The Council of the Four Seasons
by wolfchic011
Summary: Two days after the end of the eternal winter, Elsa disappears without a trace. Kristoff, Sven and Olaf go after her, leaving Anna in charge of an Arendelle that is still very much unsettled. Meanwhile, Elsa is about to discover exactly where her frosty powers came from…and what destiny they tie her to.
1. Prolouge

_Prologue- A Summer Storm_

The troll named Goren was running so fast he was practically rolling. He dashed past the chapel and the meeting hall, trying his best not to curl up in a ball. If he did, he might inadvertently go into hibernation. He rounded the corner, hopping several times on his left foot to keep himself from falling over.

He knew he wasn't supposed to interrupt the Mistress's meditation but this was unprecedented. This could not go ignored.

After two more hallways, he finally skidded into the isolation room, his legs giving out underneath him so that he ended up slipping on his rocky rear end. He shot right past his meditating mistress and ended up having to claw at the ground to get himself to stop. He rolled several times ending up on his stomach.

"Theonia!" He called out towards the woman in the center of the room."Mistress, it's happened!"

The black-haired woman sitting cross-legged in the middle of the floor opened her eyes slowly, like an ember slowly breathing to life. "What." She stated simply, not even looking at him.

He scrambled back to his feet and gestured her to follow him. "Come! Look outside!"

She grabbed her cloak and hurried after him, fastening the billowing material around her neck as she went. He led her to the temple entrance, rolling a bit so he could keep up with her long strides. When they reached the entrance hall, Theonia went straight to the window. Her eyes were immediately drawn far to the east.

"A winter storm…?" It was the summer solstice. Theonia's grip tightened on the window sill. "Where is that place?" She asked, picking out a castle in the epicenter of the storm.

The troll rolled along the floor curled up in a ball and then sprang into the air, barely managing to catch himself on the edge of the windowsill. "I believe it is Arendelle, the castle on the fjord." He told Theonia as he scrambled back to his feet. "It is a small kingdom, peaceful but prosperous and notoriously secluded."

Theonia gazed out towards the miniscule castle in the distance as ice began to climb its many turrets and balconies. She turned to the troll just as he managed to gain a favorable footing on the window. "Goren! The scroll!"

Undeterred by the unfortunate timing, the tiny troll scampered away and raced over to an untidy bookshelf in the next room. From the very bottom shelf, he tugged on a long blue scroll until he finally freed it from under a stack of books.

Goren raced back to Theonia's side, crashing into the wall under the window and panting hard.

"Births in that kingdom on the summer solstice." She commanded, not sparing him a glance as she continued to watch the city.

The little rock man unfurled the scroll and peered carefully at the tiny moving writing.

"None today my lady." He replied, gasping to regain his breath.

"Check past years."

He diligently unfurled the scroll further. "None…none…none…oh wait!" He called as his eyes fell on one tiny name inscribed near the end. "Ah yes… there was one."

Theonia bristled. "Who?"

Goren glanced up at her. "My lady, this birth was twenty-one years ago…"

"Well, that's exactly how long we've been looking isn't it?"

Goren looked at the scroll again. "She's a princess…"

Theonia visibly froze. "…impossible…" Her eyes followed the howling storm winds for a full minute before she turned to Goren. "How long has the kingdom been sealed?"

"Fourteen years." Goren replied.

"That would make her…seven when she…"

The two of them turned back to Arendelle, watching the icy winds swirl and twist, gradually building so much that they obscured the castle from view. Theonia shivered visibly.

"'Winter's fury knows no master.'" The troll said softly from his perch on the windowsill. The long scroll had fallen behind him, unfurling across the floor.

"'Except the warmth that quells it faster.'" Theonia finished just as softly. She watched the swirling storm with a mixture of fear, awe and excitement. "Call to Scara and Garret," She told Goren. "we leave immediately."

A young man entered the room then, drenched in sweat and carrying a heavy axe effortlessly over one shoulder. "What's going on?" He asked, wiping his brow as he looked from Theonia to Goren to the scroll.

Theonia met his gaze, her eyes burning. "We've found her."


	2. Chapter 1

_Chapter 1: Vanishing Act_

Queen Elsa of Arendelle had never been one to show off. Far from it, she'd spent most of her life trying to avoid all unnecessary attention. The only person she'd ever cared about impressing was Anna.

Nonetheless, she couldn't help flaunting her powers today.

She waved her hands, feeling the power flow so easily through them. It used to terrify her but now that she'd learned the secret of controlling it, the feeling gave her pleasure and pride. The snowflake quickly formed above her hands, shards expanding in an intricate pattern. Elsa twirled her hands and the flake grew until it was the size of her head. After a quick flurry of her fingers to freeze the sculpture permanently, Elsa let it go. The unique sculpture floated gently into the eager hands of the child waiting.

"Thank you Queen Elsa!" The little girl said with a huge smile that melted Elsa's heart. The little girl ran off with her prize, quickly drawing a crowd of admirers to gape at the beauty of her ice-snowflake.

Elsa chuckled and leaned back, a pillar of ice quickly rising up to support her exhausted frame. She wanted so desperately to fall asleep but knew that would be impossible. The sun was starting to set, slowly falling into the fjord to the west.

It had taken a day to reorganize the visiting lords and ladies, find replacement ships for those whose had been damaged in Elsa's storm and finalize all termination of trade agreements with Weselton and the Southern Isles. She hadn't slept that night, trying to figure out where new sources of income would come from after the end of trade with two of their closest partners. Then this morning, after the first cup of tea she hadn't accidentally frozen in years, she'd organized the Arendelle scouts to compile reports from all over the kingdom of areas and businesses that had been particularly hard hit by her freak storm. She had to make this right as best she could. She'd hardly finished that when her presence had been demanded in the courtyard to prove to the citizens of the capitol that she was in complete control of her powers. She'd gone a little overboard, she would admit but she couldn't help it. She'd held it in so long it was nothing short of a relief to let it out. And now that she knew she wouldn't hurt anybody, she let her powers shine like she never had before. She had created an ice rink, frozen the courtyard fountains and spruced up the castle a bit with some ice sculptures and ornaments that would never melt. It wasn't her ice palace in the mountains but it finally felt like home.

They had all been so accepting, her people. Especially after her crazy escape barely four days ago, the few days of bitter cold and the cloud of fear that had clung to the kingdom all that time. Apparently, lifting the winter and showing human emotion after believing she'd killed her sister was all it took to win the sympathies of the people of Arendelle.

"What are you smiling about?" Elsa turned her head to the voice of her sister and gestured after the excited girl.

"She reminds me of you." She told Anna.

Anna smiled, leaning against Elsa's ice pillar. "Please tell me I did not shriek that much as a child." She said as the little girl let out a high pitched squeal and skated around the ice with her snowflake held high above her head.

Elsa chuckled tiredly. "You still do." She assured Anna, which earned her an incredulous look. "Especially around that handsome mountain man…"

Anna's blush was as red as the sun. "I do not!" She shrieked, drawing the attention of several people in the courtyard. Elsa chuckled.

"I do not shriek around Kristoff!" Anna hissed at Elsa but she was still blushing.

Elsa chuckled. "Relax Anna, I'm only teasing."

"Sorry…it's just…I'm not used to you…being like this." Elsa tensed at the timidity in Anna's voice. The two sisters were silent, watching the others skate and shout as the sun continued to sink.

As she so often had for the last fourteen years, Elsa watched her sister without letting the other girl know. Anna and her hadn't had a chance to spend much time together after the thaw. Elsa had insisted that Anna get some food and sleep while she dealt with the fiasco resulting from her storm. Then this morning, Anna had gone off with Kristoff to finalize their promise to replace his sled and belongings.

The sisters had skated this afternoon but since then, they'd hardly seen each other. Anna had gone off with Kristoff somewhere and Elsa had had to rebuild Olaf twice after he'd learned the hard way that the forge and the baker's shop was not the best place for a snowman to hang out if he wanted to remain a snowman.

Elsa shook her head in disbelief still amazed that her powers had been able to create and sustain life. She'd have to teach Olaf the difference between heat that his flurry could hold back and unbearable heat that would cause him to melt.

Unconsciously as the two sisters stood there in silence, Anna's hand reached for Elsa's. As the girl's warm fingers brushed the back of her hand, a sudden jolt of fear shot through Elsa.

Reflexively, she leapt away from the contact.

"Elsa…I just want to hold your hand…" Anna looked hurt.

Elsa took a few deep breaths and waved her hands at the icicles that had popped up around them. Slowly, they broke apart and melted. "Anna, please." Elsa pleaded, clasping her hands tightly together and trying to get herself back under control. "Give me some time. I…this wont be easy for me."

"You were fine earlier." Anna pointed out, standing up.

Elsa ran her hands through her hair. "I know…I'm sorry…I'm sorry." Her heart was still pounding, even though her head was reminding her that this was okay now. She could touch her sister if she wanted to.

"So what's wrong?"Anna asked, her concern written all over her face.

Elsa stopped wringing her hands before she answered. "Anna, I spent fourteen years sealing myself off. It's going to take me some time to be comfortable opening up again."

Anna sighed sadly. "It's okay Elsa." She pushed away from the ice pillar, not looking at Elsa.

"Anna…" Elsa tried to grab her sister's arm but Anna was too far away.

Anna turned away. "I'll be here. As soon as you're ready to be my sister again."

Even thought there was no spite in Anna's words, only gentle encouragement, it didn't stop the statement from cutting into Elsa's heart.

"Anna…"

But her sister had gone back inside. And Elsa was left feeling strangely empty inside.

It was nearly midnight when the three cloaked figures reached the far side of the fjord. Their arrival had been somewhat delayed by the enormous winter storm that had brutally swept across the northern forests for two days and then suddenly lifted the previous day.

"That is some fearsome power Winter has…" Said a woman as the group made their way across the thawed fjord.

"You know the winter spirit." A short man replied. "Very temperamental, governed by its emotions."

The woman nodded in agreement. "Some tantrum then."

"She's twenty-one years old, this is no ordinary fit."

"Could be. I mean, after all, she is a princess."

The final member of the trio was silent, staring ahead at the large gates of Arendelle Castle.

"What's on your mind?" The man asked, snapping the final member from her thoughts.

"Many things." Was all the other woman would say as she guided their vessel out across the still fjord. As they flew across the water, the woman spoke again. "Remember: she'll have white-hair, blue eyes…"

"Icy demeanor."

She glared at the man until he ducked his head.

"No one sees us, no one gets hurt." The woman continued as the others nodded in agreement. "But this is done. We do not leave without that which we came for. Not this time."

Even though it was late and Elsa hadn't slept at all the night before, she still could not sleep. She wandered around the courtyard, alternately creating and destroying patches and sculptures of ice just because she could. It was such an odd feeling to be able to remove her ice and snow from whatever it had touched. She'd wished her entire life that she could do that. Who knew the answer had been so simple?

Anna. The one person she could never hurt.

Elsa left the courtyard and ascended to the secondary balcony that stretched along the second floor of the castle. Her heels clacked against the stones but no ice formed under her feet.

She'd missed her sister so much these last two days. Learning she could control herself around her, that she could touch her again and let her into her life was the best thing that had happened to her in her entire life. She was desperate for more. She wanted to know everything her sister had felt these past years when they'd been separated. What her sister had done these past few days that had led to her jumping in front of a blade for her. What her sister's plans were going forward with Kristoff. She wanted to hug her, to stroke her hair and slowly begin to make up for fourteen years of forced icy indifference.

Elsa iced the floor of the entire courtyard and skidded along it as fast as she could. As she went, she melted the ice behind her. No reason to leave this courtyard iced or let the cold climb all over the castle.

She slid to a halt when she reached the end of the courtyard and her thoughts returned to her sister. It was so hard to open herself up the way Anna wanted her to. Elsa had wanted something like this for years. But now that is was possible again, she couldn't seem to reach out and take it.

"Elsa?"

The queen jumped, all the remaining ice around her vanishing. She had been so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't heard or felt Olaf walking up to her.

"Hey Olaf, why aren't you in bed?"

"I couldn't sleep." The snowman replied, toddling up to her. "Something hurts."

Elsa crouched down next to him. "What hurts?" She asked gently, placing a hand on his head. In the few days Elsa had known him, she'd never known the snowman to feel pain. After all, his entire body came apart four times a day and he hardly batted an eyelash. He had even melted twice today without so much as an 'ouch'.

Olaf squirmed in delight under the attention. "Right here." He told her, pulling off one of his arms and using it to point at his chest.

Elsa was intrigued. "That's your heart, Olaf." She told him with a reassuring smile.

Olaf tilted his head to the side. "Heart?"

Elsa nodded.

"But why does it hurt?" Olaf asked, sticking his arm back into place.

Somehow, Elsa knew exactly why he was feeling pain. "It hurts because…because sometimes it's hard to feel love for someone."

"Why?"

Elsa had to smile at Olaf's simple yet impossible question. "Because…sometimes you just cant tell that person how much they mean to you and it makes you feel weak."

Olaf gently took Elsa's hand in his own twiggy one. "Do you ever feel like this Elsa?"

Her thoughts were only of Anna. "…All the time."

"Why?"

"Because I love my sister. And it's hard for me to tell her that. I loved her for years and I couldn't ever tell her because I had to keep her safe. And now I'm worried that she still thinks I want to keep things from her. That I'm still shutting her out."

"Oh Anna knows." Olaf said.

Elsa frowned in confusion. "How do you know?"

"Anna loves you." Olaf reassured her. "And she knows you love her. Because she doesn't give up on you. She never did." He shrugged. "Maybe it's not something you need to say but something you need to show. Like how Anna threw herself between Hans and you to prove her love."

Olaf's blunt but entirely innocent statement felt like it was sending an icicle straight through Elsa's heart.

But he was right. What was the point of forcing this? She loved Anna, Anna loved her, they had both proven that in their own ways.

Olaf was patting his chest experimentally. "Thanks Elsa, I feel better." He jumped up to hug her tightly around the neck. "Goodnight!"

Elsa chuckled and hugged him back briefly. "Goodnight, Olaf. Thank you."

As Olaf ran back inside to his new bedroom. Elsa watched him go, feeling better herself.

Standing up again, Elsa shot ice from her hand, creating a wide base on the ground.

Olaf reminded her so much of the childhood that her powers had ripped from her. Those innocent days when everything was simple and hugging her sister had been second nature. She still wasn't comfortable with human contact, her initial reaction was still to flinch away from it, to seal herself away where she wouldn't hurt anyone. But even though her head knew she could never hurt Anna again, her heart would not stop worrying.

Elsa widened the base with a sweep of her hand, her ice following her thoughts more than it did her gestures. Olaf was right, maybe she couldn't tell Anna how she felt in words. She'd just have to let her sister know that she was trying, that she still wanted this but just couldn't open herself up yet.

Elsa would have to show her in her own way.

The air grew colder around her as she flaunted her powers. She sculpted the new statue as much with her heart as with her gift. Even though it wasn't necessary, she began to dance, stepping lightly and spinning to form the ice not only with her hands but her entire body, the same way she'd created her ice palace.

The statue quickly took shape: two young girls surrounded by icy heaps of snow. In between them, there was the half-formed shape of a snowman.

Anyone who knew the sisters well would immediately realize it was supposed to be the two of them from long ago. Their maids might know and some of the others of the palace staff might figure it out if they admired it long enough. To anyone else, this was simply another sculpture. But only Anna (and maybe Olaf) would know its real significance. This was the relationship she wanted with her sister again. Open, innocent and fun.

Elsa looked up as she added the finishing touches: darker blue cheeks for Anna and a slightly lighter hair shade for herself. She nodded in satisfaction. The sculpture was positioned at the perfect angle for Anna to see it when she looked out her window.

With a final twirl, she froze the statue permanently. She took a step back to admire it.

It was only when she lowered her hands that she realized she was being watched.

Elsa whirled around and saw two hooded figures on the far end of the courtyard, patiently watching her. They were still and silent, as if they had risen from the shadows.

Elsa immediately stiffened, her hands coming up in defense. "Who are you? Show your faces!" How had they gotten inside the castle?

As one, the two figures raised their hands and lowered their hoods.

Elsa took a step back. This was certainly not what she had been expecting.

She was facing two women: one of them a black-haired woman about her own age, the other a shorter yellow-blonde woman who could not have been much older than Anna. The black-haired woman had her hair cropped close to her skull, the blonde's ran long and loose down her back.

"Elsa of Arendelle." The black-haired woman said without a hint of question.

"That's Queen Elsa to you." Elsa replied, drawing her head higher. "Who are you?"

The women did not answer her question.

"I'm very sorry, Elsa." The black-haired woman said. "But you'll have to come with us."

Elsa smiled pleasantly. "I'm afraid that's just not possible." She said in a voice like ice.

"You will come or we will have to take you by force." Said the black-haired one, her voice flat.

"I'd like to see you try." Elsa replied, flexing the fingers on her left hand, feeling the power run down them. "Maybe you just don't know who you are dealing with."

The black-haired woman smiled sadly. "Oh we know exactly who we are dealing with." She nodded at the blonde woman and the two of them stepped closer together, their shoulders touching.

Elsa stamped her foot and the floor of the courtyard immediately iced over. The two didn't even blink. They did not start to slid on the slippery surface but the blonde woman did grip the black-haired woman's arm.

Gathering her power into a condensed ball in her palms, Elsa shot ice at the black-haired woman but none of it seemed to touch her. It all vanished as it approached her.

Realizing her attack was doing nothing, Elsa stopped, puzzled. There was a puddle of water around the women now, as if all her ice had simply melted upon coming into proximity of the two. Elsa flicked her fingers at the puddle and it instantly froze. And then instantly unfroze and returned to water.

The black-haired woman continued to stare at Elsa, not moving a muscle.

"Scara." She said.

The blonde made a gesture with her free hand and suddenly the courtyard plants all sprung to life and doubled in size, vines snapping. Elsa barely had time to blink before they were snapping at her ankles and twining their way up her legs.

She shot ice at a vine, freezing it in place but two more quickly took its place and trapped her hands. She struggled and fought, snow shooting ineffectively from her restrained fingers. The vines wrapped tightly around her, constricting her chest painfully and stretching her limbs out in all directions. Elsa feebly waved her hand at the vines but they shook off the thin layer of ice she sent around them.

The vines had reached her face, they were closing around her throat and mouth.

Elsa closed her eyes as leaves grew over them. This was it, she was never going to see Anna again, never get to apologize…

_Anna…_

Her eyes snapped open and the cold burst from her in all directions. With a splintering snap, all the vines on her body froze and broke into pieces, raining down to the courtyard below. Elsa dropped to the ground, landing heavily but otherwise unhurt. She looked up. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the sculpture. Her resolve toughened. She was not losing this fight.

Both the women were staring at her in alarm but not, Elsa realized, in fear.

Slowly, she stood, her power glowing in her palms. The temperature in the courtyard dropped so much that everyone's breath became visible as they exhaled. She saw them both shiver and glance at each other as if rethinking their strategy.

Icicles began to rise out of the courtyard floor, all of them deadly sharp and pointing at the cloaked women.

Elsa smiled. These two would come to fear her. She didn't care who they were or what kind of powers these two had. No one walked into her kingdom and tried to kidnap her. No one threatened Arendelle. No one.

Elsa suddenly felt a tiny poking sensation on the back of her neck and the cold in her palms evaporated. When she rubbed the spot, her fingers came away clutching a tiny, bloody barb.

"What…?"

She called to the ice in her veins but none came. She swayed, suddenly woozy, two sleepless nights and the events of the last week quickly catching up to her and hitting her all at once. Every muscle clenched painfully, her breath became labored. Elsa tried to focus on the two women in front of her, tried to force her gift to immobilize them, or her throat to scream for help. Neither responded.

She fell. There was a large leaf under her, softening her head as it met the warming ground…

"Was that really necessary?" The black-haired woman called as Elsa dropped to the courtyard floor, unconscious. The blonde woman slowly lowered her hand, the giant leaf cradling Elsa depositing her gently on the ground.

The man in black dropped silently from his position in the shadow of a large statue along the wall to land beside the snow queen. "She put up quite a fight." He commented, tucking his dart gun back in his belt. "And I didn't see you two coming up with any clever ideas right away." He reached Elsa's side and gently placed two fingers against her neck, taking a pulse. "Didn't want there to be a huge commotion." His eyes traveled her body curiously, as if searching for flaws.

"Garret, stop marveling and help us get out of here. Sooner rather than later would always be appreciated." The black-haired woman snapped.

The blonde woman gestured at the plants again and they quickly curled around Elsa's still form to wrap her in a cocoon. The man called Garret then easily hoisted the bundle across his shoulders.

"Ready." He said to the other two.

The blonde woman gestured again and some of the remaining plants in the courtyard twined together to form a large platform. The three stepped onto it, Garret gently placing the bundle containing the queen on the platform.

"Hold on tight to her majesty there." The black-haired one said. "The trip home is going to be a little bit faster."

She swirled her hands around the air in front of her then thrust her hand out across the fjord. A strong, warm wind gushed through the courtyard and lifted the platform off the ground. The trio vanished into the night on a summer's breeze, the still form of the queen resting gently between them. Back in the courtyard, a single drop of water fell from the newly-formed ice sculpture.


	3. Chapter 2

A.N.: Thanks so much for your response to the last chapter! Enjoy the new one!

_Chapter 2: Missing in Action_

The sun rose and reached its height but still no one had seen the Queen.

"Elsa!" Anna was wandering the castle grounds having already failed to locate her sister in her room, the kitchens, the library or even their secret rendezvous in the tower. None of the staff had seen her since last night.

"I'm sorry if you got upset last night." Anna called, peering down towards the open gates in hope that she would catch sight of her sister's glistening ice dress or train. She was disappointed to only see a few wandering civilians and merchants setting up shop. Anna stepped down from the fence and continued on her way. She passed a lump of misshapen ice on the secondary courtyard that was slowly dripping onto the stones.

"Wherever you went Elsa, did you really think it was wise to let all your ice sculptures melt like this?" Anna drew a finger along the melting ice, rubbing the water between her fingers as she continued her search. This was too much like a few days ago when she'd ridden after her sister, calling pointlessly across the snow.

Anna hated that she and her sister hadn't spent more time together these past two days. Sure they had both needed rest and then Anna had had to replace Kristoff's sled like she promised and Elsa had needed to clean up the crazy things that had been happening since her coronation.

_Finally_ they could be sisters again! Not just two strangers who lived in the same castle. They were past all the ugly stuff now, the silence, the distance. They should have spent last night sitting on Elsa's bed, swapping stories from all these silent years, sipping cocoa and giggling.

But Elsa wasn't ready. Anna should have known better. Fourteen years of separation were not overcome in a single day. Especially with Elsa. Elsa was secretive and very independent, she had been even back when the girls had been best friends. Elsa did everything alone. Sure she was always there whenever Anna had asked her to play or talk but for the most part, Elsa had been a loner from the start.

Anna continued watching the statue, trying to guess what it had been before summer had started to melt it but the statue was too far gone already. She knew her sister was trying, she had proved that much yesterday when they'd skated together. Elsa had held her hands the whole time, guiding her gently across the icy courtyard, catching her every time she fell. But then later, her sister had flinched away from her entirely and Anna could see the wall struggling to come back up. To shut her out. Anna hated that stupid wall.

She knew Elsa needed her time to adjust and her space. It didn't help that Anna had been ready for years to throw herself at her sister whenever she wanted and spend hours talking about nothing in particular. And maybe one day they'd return to that, once Elsa learned that Anna had never been afraid of her, that Elsa's powers could not hurt Anna anymore.

Anna didn't know if she could handle such a carefully controlled, hot and cold relationship in the meantime.

"Anna!"

The princess turned at her name and was surprised to see her boyfriend cantering up to the secondary courtyard on Sven.

"Kristoff!" Anna dashed forward and into his sweeping embrace as he dismounted. He'd been planning to reinstate his ice business today and break in the new sled with a trip up to the mountains. He'd asked Anna to come but she'd politely declined, hoping the day could have been spent rekindling her and Elsa's lifelong love of dropping ice balls from their balconies to the courtyards below. How quickly that plan was being ruined.

"Anna," Kristoff said as he spun her once then put her down. "Are you okay? Is Elsa alright? What's happening?"

Anna's brow furrowed in confusion. "How did you…?"

Kristoff pointed up at the tower. "The palace…it's _melting_."

Anna looked up and gasped in surprise. All the icy ornaments and decorations Elsa had set up around the castle the previous day, ones she had sworn would stay there forever, were slowly drooping and melting into cascades of water that ran down the castle walls.

"I could see it from up the mountain so I hurried back." Kristoff told Anna. "What's going on? I thought Elsa's sculptures would never melt?"

Anna was watching the giant snowflake her sister had hung on the steeple of the tower. "They shouldn't." She said quietly. It had dripped itself into a misshapen blob of ice just like the sculpture next to them. As she watched, a large section of the bottom broke off and crashed to the roof below, then slid slowly downwards.

The look on Kristoff's face was the one Anna imagined he'd have if he ever saw Elsa's ice palace in the mountains being smashed to pieces. "Then why are they?" He asked Anna, tearing his eyes from the dripping garlands of snowflakes hanging around the courtyard.

Anna shrugged. "I don't know but I think it has something to do with the fact that no one has seen Elsa all morning."

Kristoff was startled. "What? Where is she?"

"We don't know. She's gone." A thought struck Anna. "She couldn't have run away again could she? To her palace on the North Mountain?"

Kristoff shook his head. "Somehow I doubt it. Even the ice up in the mountains is melting."

"What?"

Sven snorted in agreement as Kristoff nodded. "Yeah, that's why I hurried back. Sven and I had just reached Isen Lake. It almost never thaws completely, even in the middle of summer. But it was completely clear, not a sheet of ice in sight."

Anna glanced back at the melting sculpture. "But…it's no warmer than it has been since the thaw." This was starting to scare her. Where was Elsa? Why were her creations melting? They hadn't the last time she ran away! The icicles she'd accidentally cast in the ballroom had had to be chipped from the floor piece by piece. Why was everything melting now? Was this somehow her fault again?

As always, the mountain man could tell she was upset. Kristoff wrapped a comforting arm around Anna's shoulders. "So what's going on?" He asked.

Anna shook her head, fighting back tears. "I don't know but we need to find my sister, fast!"

"Hi guys!"

Both Anna and Kristoff whirled on the spot as if they had been caught kissing but it was only Olaf, toddling unsteadily up to them.

"Is it warmer today or is that just me?" Olaf asked them, then giggled. "Summer is fun, isn't it?"

"Olaf, have you seen Elsa recently?" Anna asked. The snowman seemed to regard Elsa as a mother and had been seen following the Queen around the previous day jumping at her heels like an excitable five-year old.

Olaf shook his head back and forth. "No. I haven't." Sven let out a groan and bent his head to get a scratch from Olaf's stick hands.

"Oh wait!" Olaf suddenly shouted, making the others all jump. "I don't know if this helps, but I saw her here last night. She made this." He gestured at the misshapen blob of ice. "And she gave me some great advice about feeling better."

Anna was about to ask Olaf what the sculpture had been but suddenly noticed something very disturbing. "Olaf…where's your flurry?"

Olaf looked up, clearly noticing for the first time that his life-sustaining personal flurry Elsa had gifted him with had evaporated. "Oh that's odd. I thought it was a little too warm out here…" His nose began to slide out of his face. He absentmindedly pushed it back into place. "Elsa warned me about being places where it was too hot…"

"Come on Olaf," Anna said quickly, trying not to let her panic show as more water ran down Olaf's face. "we need to get you somewhere cold." She took Olaf's hand and pulled him towards the castle, thinking that the dungeons or cellars might still be cold enough from the freeze that Olaf would be okay down there.

Kristoff was going to follow Anna and Olaf down to the cellars but Sven caught the end of his tunic and pulled.

"What is it buddy?"

Sven pulled Kristoff towards the melting ice statue, huffing and snorting at something on the ground next to it.

"What do you mean 'something smells funny?'" Kristoff asked the reindeer. "That's just you buddy…"

Sven snorted again, only this time sounding a bit more indignant. He nudged something near the base of the statue with his nose and pawed the ground anxiously.

Kristoff picked up the tiny barb that had caught his friend's attention. It was covered in dried blood.

"Where did this come from?"

* * *

_"An act of true love will thaw a frozen heart…" _

_"Love will thaw…" I repeated slowly. "Love." Of course._

_It all seemed so simple now. I loved my sister, I could never hurt her. She loved me, she'd just thrown herself in front of a sword to save me. I loved this kingdom. _

_"Elsa?" She asked as I dropped her hands._

_"Love!" I said again. I threw my arms out to my side._

_The power rippled from me softly, the natural worm breeze flowing in to the snow around us, gently swirling it into the air. The ice on the fjord cracked and melted. My sister gasped as the snow under our feet began to rise into the air. I moved with the wind, the ice around us melting and flowing upward to follow the motion of my arms._

_Icicles melted, snow rushed upwards, warmth poured back into the fjord.  
_

_I lifted the veil from my heart. And summer returned to the kingdom._

* * *

Elsa awoke with a gasp.

"Calm down, you're not in danger."

Elsa's eyes snapped to the voice, her vision clearing slowly. The black-haired woman from the courtyard was sitting next to her bed on a small wooden stool, her hands gently folded in front of her.

"Sleeper's Potion, an ancient troll spell." The woman explained to Elsa's unasked question. "It can be used as a temporary suppressant of your powers. Don't even try, you're still under its influence." She said drily as Elsa raised her palm.

Elsa ignored her and tried to send ice her way. A single snowflake fluttered feebly from her fingers and melted instantly. The effort alone made her head swim again. Elsa gripped her head and found her braid had come undone. Her long white hair cascaded around her shoulders.

Looking around, Elsa saw she was in a small, simple but comfortable room. There was a single window high on the wall along which her bed lay. A pitcher and glass rested on the table beside her alongside a potted plant that swayed softly. The room was devoid of any other decoration besides the stool her companion was currently occupying.

The woman was silent, her gaze focused on the wall opposite them, where there was a small door. It was almost as if she were contemplating how quickly she could leave.

Her head clearing, Elsa tried to get up, only to realize that to her horror, she was wearing nothing but a slip that barely covered her breasts.

"What did you do to me?" She shouted, hastily covering herself up with the blanket. This was no way for a queen to be dressed, no matter where she was!

"Sorry." The woman shrugged, still not looking as Elsa hastily tried to pull the blanket further up around herself. "How were we to know most of your clothing was made of ice?" She waved a hand blindly towards the blanket. "Don't worry, it's just us girls here except for Garret. Well, and Goren. But he'd a doctor and Garret knows if he so much as thinks about stealing a glance, he'd find himself roasted, whipped and frozen solid in the blink of an eye."

Elsa didn't particularly care about who those two were but this last comment caught her attention.

"What do you want with me?" She asked. She'd already guessed that her captors had powers similar to her own but she still hadn't quite figured out the extent of them.

The woman turned and glared at Elsa. "We've been looking for you for a long time." She said softly.

Elsa shivered. Her eyes were an unsettling deep ruby-red.

As she looked into them, a sudden overwhelming fear seized the queen like a flame beginning to spread.

Elsa grabbed for the pitcher next to her bed and threw it as hard as she could at the black-haired woman. It smashed into her nose with a sickening crack, water spilling everywhere.

The red-eyed woman gripped her nose in pain, her eyes flashing like embers. Undeterred, Elsa flicked her fingers at the spilled water which, to her delight, froze, coating the woman's black clothes in thick rime.

As she watched however, the rime evaporated into steam and drifted lazily to the ceiling.

Elsa wasn't sticking around to question her weakened powers and strange captor. She jumped to her feet, dragging the blanket with her for modesty.

Still pinching her now bleeding nose, the other woman waved her hand and a thick ring of smoke engulfed Elsa. The queen fell to the floor, tangled in the sheet, choking as heavy smoke filled her lungs.

"Stop that." The woman commanded as Elsa gasped for breath. "It wont do for us to fight, we need to work together." Her voice sounded very odd because she was still pinching her broken nose but the smoke did not let up.

Just as Elsa was beginning to see spots, a warm breeze suddenly rushed through the room, clearing the smoke instantly.

"Goodness! I can't leave you two alone for more than a minute can I?" Eyes watering, Elsa looked up at her savior.

The blonde woman from the courtyard danced into the room and immediately enveloped Elsa in a tight hug.

"You'll be alright here your majesty, we're not going to hurt you." She said in a light, happy voice as Elsa tensed against the unexpected and entirely unwelcome human contact.

The blonde released Elsa and helped wrap the blanket more securely over her half-naked form.

"I never thought Isen would be the rash one…" She commented to the black-haired woman as she helped Elsa stand and sit back down on the bed. "always assumed that would be you…" As soon as Elsa was settled, the blonde turned to the potted plant and stroked it softly.

The black-haired woman settled herself back on the stool, still pinching her bleeding nose. "Scara…" She said quietly in a voice that held a hint of threat.

"Oh sorry, let me get that…" The blonde drifted over to the other woman and gently pinched her bleeding nose. The injured woman let out a little moan as her nose righted itself and stopped bleeding.

The woman named Scara gently removed her fingers to reveal a small wooden splint holding the woman's nose in the proper place. "Need some ice for that?" She asked with a wink at Elsa. "I'm sure her majesty wouldn't mind."

This comment earned her glares from both of them.

"Sorry about the rude awakening." The blonde apologized to Elsa, completely ignoring Elsa's icy look. "We still haven't quite got the dosage right, so you might experience some dizziness, loss of your strength and ice powers and quite possibly, hot flashes and sudden flaring anger." She laughed lightly as if this were some kind of personal joke. "But don't worry," She assured Elsa. "your power is growing with the coming winter so you'll probably get over it in no time."

When Elsa didn't answer her or even break her icy glare, the blonde woman named Scara turned to the black-haired woman. "I thought royals were supposed to be very polite?" She asked in a loud whisper, sounding confused.

"They're also not usually dragged from their homes in the middle of the night." Elsa said sharply.

This dimmed the smile on Scara's face slightly. "I take back what I said Theo," She said over her shoulder in the same volume as before. "she's got more bite than you do."

"Who are you?" Elsa asked, her patience wearing out. "Why have you brought me here?"

The black-haired woman rolled her eyes. "Haven't you figured it out yet? Did you really think you were the only one?" She asked.

Elsa just stared at her blankly.

The black-haired woman heaved a heavy sigh, like a teacher who was explaining something to a particularly dull pupil. "Nature is always in balance. So," She gestured around the room with her arm. "Meet other weights on the scale."  
Elsa looked from Scara to the other woman, slowly starting to put it together.

The black-haired woman snapped her fingers and a tiny flame sprung to life on her index finger. She tossed it from finger to finger, never taking her eyes from it. "There are four of us," The black-haired woman continued. "each of the four seasons. I am Summer, my birth name is Theonia." She closed her fist around the flame, snuffing it out. Elsa realized she was staring and hastily closed her mouth,

The yellow-blonde woman spoke up then. "You already know what I can do! I'm Spring! But call me Scara."Her eyes were a brilliant emerald and glowed with soft, earthy warmth. She pointed at Theonia. "We all just call her Theo!" This brought an exasperated sigh from the aforementioned.

Elsa looked around the room again, taking a moment to truly look at her captors. Her assessment in the courtyard had not been incorrect: Theo was probably about her age, maybe a few months older or younger and Scara looked to be about a year younger than Anna. Both of them were dressed in simple black dresses; Theonia's enhanced only by red trim on the short sleeves but Scara's long dress dancing with the greens and yellows one typically associated with spring flowers. "And…where's Autumn?" Elsa asked, looking from Theonia to Scara.

Theonia's gaze darkened at this but it was Scara who answered.

"Well that's why you're here El!" She said, trying to sound optimistic but her worried glance at Theo severely crippled her effort. "Sorry, would you prefer a nickname like Theo?" Scara suddenly asked Elsa, seeming worried that she had offended the girl. "Or do you prefer Elsa? Or your majesty? Or Isen? Do you go by Isen at all? Ever?"

"Unfortunately, Autumn could not be retrieved." Theonia said, interrupting Scara's rambling.

Elsa turned to Theo. "Retrieved?"

"Like how we retrieved you." Theo said.

"Kidnapped." Elsa pointed out.

"Retrieved." Theonia replied coolly. She stood and turned to gaze out the small, high-set window. "What we did was entirely necessary."

Elsa was about to have a word with her about the definition of 'necessary' but paused when Scara violently shook her head, her lips tight.

"Spring and Summer are strong but not nearly as potent as Winter." Theo continued, still looking out the window. "With three of us, we can overcome anything keeping us from finding Autumn and restore the balance of the seasons."

"Why am I required?" Elsa asked.

Theo turned to her then and Elsa fought not to cave under those eyes. "We were able to transport you using plants." She told Elsa. Scara offered Elsa an apologetic smile. "We can't do that with Autumn." Theo continued. "Whatever she touches will die upon contact with her skin." Theo glanced down at Elsa's hand, which was stretched out on her thigh. "Ice isn't alive, it makes the perfect cage."

Elsa snatched her hand away. "What makes you think you'll need a cage? Did you ever consider trying just talking to her?"

Theo ignored Elsa's suggestion. "Autumn can be stubborn." She eyed Elsa. "Very much like you."

"So why not just stick her with some of those poison barbs?"

Theo bristled instantly and sparks snapped at her fingers. Scara noticed and immediately spoke up. "That's not the best idea…"

"Are you crazy?" Theo hissed, ignoring Scara completely and advancing on Elsa. "Has your royal education taught you everything except common sense? Can you imagine what would happen if death went down for even a day?" She towered over Elsa's seated form, clearly trying to intimidate her. But Elsa was a queen and was not so easily subjugated. "Do you have any idea what is happening right now because we had to use it on you?" Theo continued, her eyes flashing. A thin wisp of smoke escaped from between her lips but she seemed not to notice. "Cold has lost its power for the last few hours. Any spells you have cast have come undone and the snow-packs on the mountains are melting. It could take years for those to recover!"

Elsa's thoughts immediately jumped to Arendelle and the new decorations she had hung. Then she remembered Olaf and the statue she had made Anna. She hoped Anna had seen it. She hoped Olaf had stayed out of the forge today.

"And what about now?" She asked, imagining her ice palace melting and falling into the valley. "Is it still…?"

"Once your powers start to return, everything should be back to normal." Scara assured her. "The potion just knocked you out for a few hours so cold's power over the land vanished too. Don't worry, the mountains will refreeze with time."

Theo rounded on Scara, making the younger girl flinch. "Will they?" She asked. Her voice was trembling. "How can we be sure?"

Elsa noticed a thin trial of smoke rising from one of the woman's fingers but didn't feel inclined to point it out.

Scara offered Theo a gentle smile and gently gripped her arm. Tiny roots and vines began to snake up the fire-girls arm. To Elsa's surprise, Theo watched the plants move with a small smile on her face. Slowly, the smoke dissipating from her fingers vanished.

"We will figure this out." Scara told Theo gently. Theo gave the tiniest of nods, watching the plants on her arm grow.

Sensing the others were having some kind of moment, Elsa nodded then stood, pleased that her legs seemed to have regained enough strength to support her again. She wrapped the blanket tightly around herself, still not feeling strong enough to try to make herself a new dress. "Very sorry Scara and Theo, but I can't help you." She told the girls politely, neither of which spared her a glance. "I have to get back to my kingdom." _Back to Anna…_

Elsa turned to leave. She was stopped by a gentle hand on her upper arm. Her icy-blue eyes met the flame-red ones of the woman of summer.

"You can't leave here Elsa." Theonia said in a surprisingly gentle voice, her other arm still in Scara's grip and covered in delicate vines. "None of us can. We all have to stay here."

* * *

A.N.: Let me know what you think of the new characters. I'm concerned they (well, mostly Theo) are not believable. Also just a disclaimer: there will be hints of femslash in future chapters but right now I have no definite F/F couples planned.


	4. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3: The Spirits_

Kristoff had never been one to sugar-coat things. Living in the mountains, he had to face reality and face it seriously. Still, in the past few days he'd spent with Anna, he wondered if sometimes that strategy was better left in the mountains.

"WHAT?! WHAT DO YOU MEAN SOMEONE TOOK HER?!"

Kristoff winced at the loud voice Anna was currently projecting around her room.

"Calm down Anna," He began, holding his hands up. "I'm only saying that this barb indicates that Elsa did not leave of her own free will…"

"OH MY GOSH, WE NEED TO GET AFTER THEM!" Anna was flying around the room throwing open her bureau, pulling the covers on her bed all the way back and sweeping everything on her table to the floor. Kristoff jumped back as she barreled past like a gale, stuffing things into a satchel.

"WE ARE GOING TO NEED FOOD, WEAPONS, CLOTHES, ARE WE GOING BACK TO THE MOUNTAINS AGAIN? SHOULD WE TAKE THE SLED? THE SLED SHOULD BE FASTER…"

"ANNA!" Kristoff seized her by the shoulders and lifted her clean off her feet. "LISTEN TO ME!"

Although Anna knew Kristoff would never hurt her, his outburst was enough to quiet her.

"I think your sister was kidnapped." Kristoff said bluntly.

Anna was silent as Kristoff gently lowered her back to her feet. She seemed to be having trouble processing what he'd just said.

"Whoever took Elsa knew what they were doing." Kristoff continued. He picked up the barb gently with two fingers, careful not to touch the point. "It took half an army to bring her back here from her ice palace, she wouldn't come easily. The fact that no one saw anything and that they didn't attract any attention means that these people are dangerous."

Anna looked at the barb intently, as if trying not to imagine that the blood covering it belonged to her sister. "Why would anyone want to kidnap Elsa?" She asked.

"She made a lot of enemies with the trade severances." Kristoff said. "And I'm sure many people are still suspicious of her powers."

A flicker of pain crossed Anna's face. "Where do you think they took her?"

Kristoff shrugged. "I don't know but this barb is a good place to start. I think I know someone who can help identify it."

Anna nodded, her perky attitude returning. "Right," She said, turning on her heel to scoop up a spare dress from the floor. "ready the sled! Let's go!"

Kristoff held up his hands. "Whoa, slow down there Anna, you're not going anywhere."

Even though he expected it, Anna's response still made him cower. Anna could be quite intimidating when it came to Elsa.

"She's my sister, Kristoff! I just got her back! There is no way you can expect me to just sit here while she's in danger!"

Kristoff silenced her with a kiss. "Yes, Anna, I can." He gently cupped her face. "Arendelle needs you now more than ever."

Anna violently shook her head, tears gathering in her eyes. "I'm going after Elsa!"

"Anna! How would Elsa feel if she knew you left the kingdom now?"

"She'd come after me in a heartbeat, Kristoff. You know that."

"She wouldn't leave your kingdom now." Kristoff pointed out. "Anna this past week, your kingdom went through more rulers than it has in the last 50 years. You are needed here right now."

Anna's gaze dropped to the floor. "You went after her last time," Kristoff told her. "she'll understand why you didn't this time."

Anna nodded. "Go talk to Percy about getting supplies." She told him, avoiding eye contact. "And take Olaf with you. He needs to be somewhere cold."

Kristoff nodded. "I'll go get him from the dungeons and hitch up Sven. We'll leave as soon as we can."

He slipped the barb into his pocket and turned to go. He knew Anna was upset but he was glad she was staying. She had to realize the turmoil her own kingdom was in right now. And this time, there was no Prince Hans to leave in charge. Arendelle needed a ruler now, not another stand-in. With Elsa once again missing in action, that left the kingdom in Anna's hands.

"Kristoff?"

The mountain man turned back at Anna's timid voice as he opened the door to the hallway. "Yeah?"

Anna ran to him, threw her arms around his neck and buried her face in the hollow between his shoulder and throat. He could feel her trembling, feel her shaky breaths hot against his skin. He wrapped his arms tightly around her, holding her securely against him. Even though he'd only known her for a few days, already he was so attached to her that the thought of leaving her behind made him anxious.

"Be careful." Anna whispered to him. "Bring her home."

He kissed the side of her head as protectiveness towards the girl gushed through him. "I will."

* * *

"Sorry about Theo." Elsa looked up at Scara but couldn't bring herself to smile. Theo had left several minutes ago. What for, Elsa didn't know or particularly care. What did they mean she had to stay here?

The blonde woman winced apologetically as she laid a plain, long-sleeve black dress out for Elsa. "She can get rather uptight, that's the fire in her for you. Plus it's summer so she's a little hot under the collar...But deep down she has a warm heart."

Elsa still said nothing. She stood, still feeling a bit unsteady and let the blanket slip from her shoulders.

"She took me in when I was only five and cared for me like a sister." Scara told her as she helped Elsa slip into the dress. Elsa paused at this statement but Scara didn't seem to notice. "She helped me discover my powers." The blonde continued as she tied the simple dress closed. "Theo was always there for me during the years I struggled to control it. She has the most scars from when the plants spiraled out of control."

"How old was she when she found you?" The question came out of her lips before she could stop herself.

"Ten." Scara said, sounding like she didn't mind at all. "She and Garret took me in here and raised me like siblings. Theo and I learned control together." The blonde smiled softly as she gathered up the fallen blanket. "She always hated it when she accidentally set my plants on fire so she'd make it up to me by taking me for long walks in the woods, teaching me how to identify the different plants…" Scara chuckled lightly as she folded the blanket. "One time she let me build her a flower garden on the roof…I think it's still there if you want to see it."

"Why do we all have to stay here?" Elsa asked her in a quiet voice. "Is this a prison?"

Scara waved a hand. "No, not at all. This is a temple. We have to stay to care for the temple."

"Scara…I can't stay here."

The girl seemed puzzled. "Why would you want to leave?" She asked, sitting next to Elsa on the bed. She reached for Elsa's hands but Elsa pulled back. Unlike Anna, Scara didn't seem troubled by Elsa's icy reluctance towards human contact. "I know this place isn't a palace but give it a chance, you may like it." She patted Elsa's hand gently but did not prolong the contact.

Elsa stubbornly shook her head. "I have to get back to my kingdom…to my sister."

Scara paused. "…you…have a sister?"

Elsa nodded. Scara's eyes widened. She looked like she wanted to say something else but couldn't decide if she was allowed to or not. Elsa waited patiently, wondering what was on the girl's mind and if she was actually going to tell her.

There was a knock on the door then and Scara leapt up to answer it.

"Yes? Oh hello Goren!"

A small rock rolled into the room coming to a halt just in front of Elsa.

"Greetings Mistress Elsa!" The rock popped open, revealing large rounded ears, wide, bright eyes and a bulbous nose that looked far too big for its face. Elsa smiled finding herself liking him immediately though whether because he had used the honorific or because he had a distinct genuine air about his gravelly voice she couldn't be sure.

"Goren the eighteenth my lady." The troll said, giving her a deep bow, practically touching the floor with his forehead. His scalp was entirely bald. "May I say it is an honor to finally have Winter returned to the temple."

Elsa had met trolls only once before but like every child in Arendelle, she knew all the legends of their powers and ancient age. To have one bow to _her_ was an honor indeed.

"The honor is mine good troll." Elsa said politely, bowing in return. "Please call me Elsa."

The troll seemed a little flabbergasted that Elsa had bowed to him but quickly recovered and turned to Scara.

"Mistress Scara," he said with a bow for her that Scara acknowledged with a smile. "Mistress Theonia requests that once Mistress Elsa is dressed, you two report to the chapel immediately."

"Thank you Goren." Scara said pleasantly. "Elsa just has to add the final touches and then we're all ready to go."

"Final touches?"

"Only if you're feeling up to it." Scara replied gesturing to the dress.

Elsa glanced down at her plain black sleeves and felt her fingers twitch. Calling to mind the ice dress she had constructed for herself, she began to form the ice. She still didn't have it in her to make an entire dress but that was no longer necessary so instead she just altered the one she had on.

The deep ice-blue pattern crisscrossed its way around the edges of her sleeves and followed the neckline of the dress. For flair, Elsa also made a bit of the ice climb up the bottom of the dress until it resembled a cliff caught in the grip of winter.

The fabric of the dress absorbed the ice completely and burned the pattern, texture and color into the very fabric. When Elsa ran her finger over the finished pattern on the sleeve, it felt like thread but was as cold as ice.

"Whoa."

Elsa turned to find Scara staring unabashedly at her.

"It's beautiful." The girl said examining the exquisite and unique detail Elsa had given her dress. "I had no idea you had such fine control over your powers!"

Elsa found herself blushing slightly. "Well…it's a fairly recent development."

"Excellent all the same," Goren said. He then curled up into a ball and began to rock back and forth. "Follow me." He rolled out of the room and down the corridor.

* * *

The three of them walked down several long and narrow hallways, all of which were lit with small floating globes of fire.

"Theo's work." Scara said. "They burn brightest in the wintertime. It really helps with the lighting when its gets dark in the winter!" Elsa only nodded and forced herself not to admire the beautiful floating globes that looked like self-contained snowballs of fire. She was trying to memorize the route they were taking and look for an escape at the same time.

The temple appeared to be entirely made of stone except for the places where vines and small plants grew thickly over them. The walls were completely devoid of any other decorations and the floors were without carpets or furniture.

They passed a few rooms but Elsa got barely more than a glance as they hurried down the twisted hallways. A long room full of pots and pans and chairs…a room full of sand and tiny glass balls…a room completely bare of anything except a black mat…

Finally, Goren rolled to a halt in front of a heavy, black door shaped like a large triangle. But instead of opening up, the rock went motionless.

"Oh…he's asleep…hold on…" Scara gently prodded the troll with her foot. "Goren! Goren!"

The troll sprang back to his upright form, seeming mortified that he had drifted off. "Sorry! Sorry! I'm fine! Let's go in."

He shook his head several times and pushed open the heavy black door.

They entered a large room with a high vaulted ceiling that let in a single slant of light from a high window Elsa couldn't see. The room had a distinct atmosphere of tranquility to it, you felt like every sound could be heard by everyone in the room. Silence was to be kept. Theo was sitting at the head of a wide circular table talking softly to a young man with tight, curly black hair who had a broadsword strapped to his back. They both looked up as Elsa, Goren and Scara entered.

When her eyes met the black ones of the man, Elsa froze in place. A bolt of lightning seemed to pass between them in an instant and Elsa shivered violently. The man's eyes lit up in recognition and Elsa could have sworn they flashed blue for an instant.

"Oh great…" Theo muttered as the man dashed from her side and fell to his knees in front of Elsa.

The man gently gripped Elsa's wrist with his left hand. "Elsa." His voice was rough like he was still in the process of changing from boy to man. But his body clearly showed that he had left that age many years previously. "Your Guardian Garret is here before you." The man said, his eyes on the floor. Elsa found she was unable to move as he spoke, not from shock or befuddlement but simply because _something_ seemed to be physically restraining her. The man drew the sword from his back and placed the blade along his left arm. "I pledge my sword to you, Queen of Winter." He softly drew the sword against his arm, opening up a small horizontal wound. "As well as my fists, my muscles and the very blood that runs in my veins." To Elsa's horror, he dipped his finger in the cut and traced a small circle on the inside of her wrist. But instead of painting her skin, the blood vanished upon contact with her, leaving only a slightly warm circle where his finger had touched. When he had finished, he looked up at Elsa. She was startled by the way that his deep, black eyes seemed to penetrate to her very core. "I vow I will die to protect you if need be."

"Stop staring Garret, you'll make Elsa feel more at home…" Theo called across the room. The man called Garret blinked and dropped his gaze and Elsa found she could suddenly move again. Garret dropped her hand with a grin.

"Sorry about that." He apologized to Elsa, his eyes warming considerably as he gently took her hand again. "I'm afraid I'm bound by blood to complete that ceremony the moment I first lock eyes with you." He respectfully kissed Elsa's knuckles then released her hand and stood. "I am Garret and if there is ever anything you need, just call my name and I'll be there."

Trying to fight the shock from her momentary paralysis, Elsa fought to regain her regal demeanor. "Thank you Master Garret." She thought she might be blushing but didn't mind at all.

Garret winked at her. "You're in charge here, not me."

"Great, well, now that we've got the logistics out of the way…" Theo said drily, taking a seat in a chair. "To business."

Goren leapt up onto the table alongside Garret and pulled a roll of linen from seemingly nowhere to wrap the man's arm with. As the troll began to bandage the cut, Elsa noticed two other scars on the man's left arm below where the one he'd cut for her lay.

When Goren had finished his work, he bowed to Theo, Scara and Elsa in turn then jumped off the table and rolled backwards out of the room. The door slammed behind him.

Elsa started to make her way closer to the head of the table but Scara caught her attention.

"You sit there." She said, pointing at a different seat. "Opposite Summer." Elsa circled back to the far end of the table, where Garret was holding the seat out for her. She slid into it with a smile of thanks.

"Oh and sorry for shooting you last night…" Garret muttered to Elsa as she sat down. Elsa's head whipped around in surprise but Garret was already moving back to the head of the table to stand next to Theonia.

"Garret is our Guardian." Scara explained from her seat on Elsa's left. "He was chosen by Mother when he was in the womb and has dedicated his life to serving us."

A little overwhelmed, Elsa asked the simplest of the many questions currently running amuck in her mind. "Why do we need a guardian?"

"Someone has to keep us in check." Theo told her. She nodded at Garret who bowed respectfully back, his hands clasped behind his back. "Garret knows all of our secret fail-safes," Theo continued "if need be he can render myself or Scara and now, yourself, powerless with a single touch."

Elsa recalled how she had been unable to move as Garret performed his 'ceremony' and was suddenly a little apprehensive that this stranger could seemingly render her immobile with a single touch.

"We live in a world of men." Theo was continuing, oblivious to Elsa's feelings. "A world of stupid, suspicious men who call us witches because they fear the gifts we have been granted. No offense Garret."

He shrugged, clearly used to such words.

"Garret faces those who are foolish enough to think they can overpower us the way a man tries to overpower a woman. He protects the Mother's temple from harm at all costs."

Elsa nodded in understanding. "And Goren?" She asked, folding her arms defensively against her chest.

Theo nodded towards the place where the troll had vanished. "Goren is our scribe and our healer. He succeeded his father, Goren the seventeenth only a few years ago. He keeps the library in order, brews up spells, treats our injuries and watches the scrolls for births and messages. Goren's line predicts all our births."

Elsa tilted her head slightly. "If he can predict all our births, why did it take you so long to find me?" She asked flatly.

Theo's left eye twitched in irritation but she didn't reply.

"That's just the thing…" Garret said softly, his voice carrying effortlessly through the entire room. "his father didn't predict yours."

"Your birth went unrecorded by the Isen scroll." Scara said just as quietly as if the words were not to be uttered in this space. "The scroll of Winter. We've been looking for you for years." Her green eyes peered curiously at Elsa. "For the first time, a host's birth was not recorded."

"What makes you so sure it's me?"

"Stupid question, who else would be capable of conjuring up ice and acting like a little..."

Garret cleared his throat loudly to cover up Theo's comment. She ignored him but drew a deep breath.

"Isen's host can only be born on the summer solstice in the year following the death of the previous host." Theo explained, pressing the tips of her fingers together and apparently forcing herself to calm down. "Isen's last host was killed twenty-two years ago."

"Killed?"

"It happens sometimes." Garret told Elsa. "A Guardian fails in his duty or a host is slipped poison. Its very unusual though. Then again, that's not the strangest thing that has happened in the last twenty-one years…"

"You've noticed it I think, little things that shouldn't be." Theo continued, her fingers falling in on themselves until she appeared to be praying. "Seasons changing too fast or too slow. The Southern Isles had all of their crops inexplicably die this autumn past instead of bearing fruit. Weselton's previous spring saw a frost late into July. Corona was scorched by summer heat so badly that it was without water for several weeks. And these things happened 'naturally', not like your summer 100-years blizzard." From across the table, Theo's eyes scrutinized Elsa's form, as if just noticing the dress she wore. Elsa might have imagined it, but she could have sworn a slight blush colored Theo's cheekbones. Theo folded her hands tightly and leaned back in her seat. "Something isn't right. And we need Autumn to find out what."

"Where is Autumn?" Elsa asked, looking around the room. Theo refused to meet her eyes. Scara met her gaze and shrugged, Garret showed no emotion.

Theo paused for a moment. "We don't know…" She finally admitted.

"We have tried before to reach out to the Autumn spirit, Død, but we have never been able to get through to her." Scara said. "But maybe with three of us we'll have better luck."

"The Autumn spirit?"

Scara nodded enthusiastically from her seat opposite what Elsa now assumed was Autumn's empty one. Suddenly, Scara's eyes lit up.

"Oh wait! You haven't met the other spirits yet!" She turned to the head of the table, tiny leaves beginning to sprout from where her hands gripped the wood. "Theo we have to meet Isen and introduce everyone!"

Theo briefly closed her eyes. "Scara, they've all met before, we are the hundred and fifteenth generation of hosts…" She rubbed her temple with a hand, as if warding off a headache.

But it seemed that, very much like Anna, once Scara got an idea in her head, no amount of effort could hold her back.

"Take my hands." She told Elsa, reaching around the table for them. Elsa hesitated for a moment, her fear of human contact rising within her but before she could come up with an excuse, the Spring girl seized her hands and clasped them tightly. Elsa stared at the blonde as the girl closed her eyes and began humming under her breath. In order for their hands to reach, both of them had their arms fully extended around the edge of the table. Scara was practically lying on the table.

No one moved for a few seconds.

"Where's your spirit?" Scara asked, opening her eyes and giving Elsa a puzzled look.

Elsa pulled her hands free and tucked them into her chest. "My what?"

Theo rolled her eyes. "This." She sat up straighter at the head of the table, closed her eyes and in a clear strong voice called out: "Branna!"

An enormous ball of flame shot from the tips of her fingers, the top of her head and the tips of her hair. It clung to her shoulders and head, stretching upward into the air as a writhing, twisting pillar of flame.

Now Elsa understood why the high ceiling was important.

The tower slowly boiled down to a fat ball of flames which rested just above Theo's head. Softly, the crackling flames bent into and out of shapes, embers flying in all directions, smoke and heat dissipating upwards. A wave of crippling heat rushed through the room. Distinctly in the midst of all the movement, Elsa caught sight of a face. Looking at it made something deep inside the Queen writhe and shiver but the feeling was merely a shadow of discomfort rather than an actual feeling.

"Elsa," Theo said, her eyes opening again. "meet Branna. The Summer spirit."

"A pleasure indeed, to meet the host of my dear Isen." The words came out of Theo's lips but the voice was so different that Elsa knew it was the spirit speaking through the woman rather than the woman herself. The shimmering eyes of the summer spirit closed briefly then reopened as if she had bowed to Elsa.

Unsure of what to do, Elsa inclined her head slightly.

"My turn!" Elsa tore her eyes from the summer spirit to look at Scara.

Scara's hair began to whip upwards as if climbing an invisible tree. When it reached its fullest height, it paused for a moment then slowly fell back into place, leaving behind a distinct golden impression of a woman standing on Scara's shoulders and head.

"Elsa, meet Livet." Scara said, her bright voice taking on a hint of strain. "The Spring Spirit."

The golden women smiled at Elsa, reminding her of spring warmth and causing her nostrils to flare briefly as a floral scent entered them.

"Greetings." Scara said in the same half-conscious voice Theo had used when Branna had spoken through her. "I am sorry you can not see more of me. As the summer wanes, my powers are at their weakest." Elsa nodded mutely in understanding. Livet's form was indeed so thin that Elsa could see the stones in the wall behind her through the woman. The spring spirit faded briefly into a pollen-like cloud but quickly reformed itself to its womanly shape. "But it is good to see a host for our beloved Isen again." She said warmly to Elsa.

Elsa felt tears come to her eyes but whether from the heat, the smell of flowers or sheer inability to comprehend and witness what was currently happening, she didn't know.

"Watching them takes some getting used to." Garret whispered in Elsa's ear. She had been so preoccupied with watching the spirits that she hadn't noticed the Guardian making his way back around the table to her. "Generally they are very docile though. But don't test Branna as Autumn sets in…" He advised her. "She doesn't like losing power."

Wordlessly, Elsa looked from him to the towering fire-spirit and back. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Theo smirk and tried not to let her annoyance show on her face.

"How did they find you?" The spring spirit asked Elsa kindly, a wave of pleasant-smelling pollen wafting over her.

Elsa fought to regain her regality that had been trained into her from years of preparation to be Queen. "Well," She began in a voice she had spent hours practicing alone for use in council meetings "they broke into my palace last night, drugged me and kidnapped me." Her voice was entirely controlled and pleasant, without a hint of spite.

"Elsa here, lost control of her powers and caused an eternal winter in the kingdom of Arendelle and beyond." Theo said drily, her normal voice startling Elsa as it burst from her mouth. "It nearly reached the temple." She spared Elsa a glance that looked more like a challenging glare. Elsa only lifted her chin and gave her a small smile.

Branna glanced down at her host then back up at Elsa. "But you retrieved her only after its end…" The fire spirit said. Slowly she leaned forward to peer at Elsa. The heat coming off of the spirit was enough to make Elsa feel like she was melting but she held the thing's gaze. She was a Queen greeting a diplomat, nothing more. After a moment, Branna turned to Livet/Scara in question. Both of them nodded.

"All the snow had faded once we reached the city." Scara said. "We were lucky it was mid-summer so that it cleared up quickly."

"It was easy once I learned how to reverse the storm." Elsa told the room with a humble chuckle.

Every eye in the place snapped to her.

Branna turned back to Elsa, tiny embers flying off of her and vanishing into the air. "You shouldn't have been able to lift that winter yourself." The fire spirit said sternly as if Elsa had wronged her greatly. "Only I can lift the spells of Isen's host."

"But I _did _lift the winter." Elsa said patiently. "I'm in complete control of my powers now, look." She turned in her seat and sculpted a large snowflake next to the door, far enough away from the waves of heat pouring off the summer spirit that it wouldn't melt right away. It seemed the effects of the potion had indeed worn off entirely, she felt great. The snow and ice were _hers_ again, they moved at her command. When she finished, she separated her hands and the snowflake burst into a million tiny particles of ice and vanished. She heard Garret inhale sharply and felt a twinge of intense pride. She must certainly be in better control than either Theo or Scara if he was this shocked by her display.

"Impossible." Elsa heard Livet say though Scara. She turned around to find everyone in the room staring at her in horror.

"Isen's host cast an eternal winter in mid-summer and lifted it herself?" Scara said, her eyes widened in surprise.

Branna appeared to be for all intents and purposes, in a fiery rage. The fire spirit blazed taller, her towering flames blocking the light from the window and causing Theo to flinch slightly under her.

"_What are you doing Isen_?" The spirit bellowed, her crackling voice echoing around the high ceiling. Little tendrils of fire whipped from her body around the room, filling the space with light and small rings of smoke. One of the whips of flame cut straight through Livet, making her dissolve into pollen again then reform with a tired expression on her face. "Why do you cower inside your host and toy with her? Why do you not face us?" Branna screamed. A jet of flame shot from Theo's mouth. She flinched but otherwise appeared unhurt.

Terrified, Elsa sat as far back in her chair as she could, suppressing the desire within her to run and never look back. "I don't know what you're talking about…can't you all do this?"

She glanced at Garret but he had backed away from her, his black eyes flashing. He stood beside Scara and Livet who was still struggling to regain her form as more tendrils of flame cut her apart.

"How _dare_ you? Have you forgotten all we have been through?" Elsa was beginning to guess where Theo's fiery bursts of temper came from.

Livet had almost entirely dissolved and seemed to be unable to reform fast enough to keep up with Branna's whips. Scara had started to sweat and tremble.

Garret placed a gentle hand on Scara's shoulder. Seeming relieved, Livet faded entirely and Scara shuddered as the spirit re-entered her body. Theo shot a glance at the blonde and her eyes narrowed in concern. Above her, Branna followed her gaze and deflated a bit, coming back to her initial height. The flames stopped flying around the room. Garret still had his hand on Scara's shoulder, offering the exhausted younger girl support.

"How did you stop the winter?" Branna asked Elsa in a growl.

Elsa looked the spirit straight in the eyes. They glowed like two hot coals. "I discovered that love thaws a frozen heart."

Her simple statement seemed to pierce the spirit right to her core. "No…no that can't be it…" The fire spirit shrank dramatically, becoming no larger than a dog and burning softly on Theo's head and shoulders. She was silent for a long while, seeming to have withdrawn herself into contemplation.

"Theo and I should have been the only way to lift that winter from your kingdom." Branna said. Theo nodded curtly in response, her hands curled tightly around the table. Smoke was starting to rise from her palms. "We are the warmth that banishes winter's cold, as you and Isen are the cold that soothes our heat…" Branna looked at Elsa. "And yet you conjured it when your powers were weakest and banished it just as quickly…" Branna continued softly.

"Could there be some other way?" Theo asked in her normal voice, turning her eyes upward to gaze at the fire spirit as best she could. "Perhaps the trolls have intervened?"

The woman in the flames shook her head. "The trolls are wise and skilled but they hold no power over our magic. The only other way would be if Elsa and Isen had already sealed their bond and come to their host agreement. As you and I did."

Theo's eyes snapped back to Elsa and narrowed. Elsa ignored her, choosing instead to focus on Theo's bodily companion. Branna had grown again and was now leaning forward again. She peered so intently at Elsa that she was looking right into her soul Elsa was sure. The Snow Queen shivered.

"But I can tell just by looking at you that you two haven't done that." Branna said in a voice like a hot gust of wind. "You have never spoken to Isen. And she has not made herself known to you."

* * *

A.N. Thanks for the reviews and support guys! Please do let me know if this is getting too complicated or whatnot. I promised myself I would not go crazy with plot details for this story but...


	5. Chapter 4

_Chapter 4: Special Circumstances_

_There was another voice, just outside the icy walls._

_I turned away from Anna. "Wait…what is that?" Terror shot through me as the doors opened once more. Who had Anna brought with her?_

_A snowman waddled into the room. A snowman with a fat bottom, long twiggy arms and a misshapen carrot nose. "Hi! I'm Olaf and I like warm hugs!" He shouted happily, running towards the stairs._

_But…but that was…I leaned forward. "Olaf?" How was this possible?_

_He stopped next to Anna, all of his enthusiasm melting into uncertainty. Maybe melting was the wrong word… "You built me…" He reminded me, folding his hands timidly in front of him. "Remember that?"_

_How could I ever forget him? "And you're alive?" I asked softly._

_He moved his arms experimentally. "umm…yeah, I think so…"_

_I looked down at my hands. I could…this gift of mine could create… life?_

_"He's just like the one we built as kids…" Anna said, crouching down to pat Olaf on the head. This earned her a bright smile from the snowman._

_"…yeah…" I said quietly. He was exactly like the one we built as kids. That had been my only thought when I'd made him. I had wanted my first creation to be something to tie me to Anna, something to remind me of the innocence that had once defined my gift._

_"Elsa, we were so close." Anna was saying, obviously thinking fondly of the memories of our childhood. "We can be like that again." _

_My weighed heart soared. We could…she knew my secret now, there was no longer any reason to hide…to push her away._

**_"Catch me!"_**

**_"Slow down!"_**

**_My icy blast struck her. Anna fell unmoving to the snow below._**

**_Heart racing, I scrambled across the ice to her still form and rolled her over. "Anna!" I watched in horror as a stripe of Anna's hair turned as white as my own._**

**_"Mama! Papa!"_**

**_I clutched her cold form tightly, as if I could bring her back merely by holding her. The ice around me crackled as it expanded and grew black as the terror rushed through me, mirroring the fear that the life in my arms had already gone out. The power spun out of control and whirled around the room, icing the walls, covering everything in winter's sorrow…_**

**_I couldn't lose Anna. I couldn't lose her…_**

_"No." I told Anna, folding my arms around me as the memory of that terror threatened to overcome me and drown me in sorrow again. "We can't."_

* * *

Elsa blinked and the memory faded.

She wrapped her arms around herself tightly to try to ward off the sudden chill that filled her. She never got cold. Maybe it was this room.

Elsa sat gently on the bed frame, which squeaked slightly under her weight sounding like years of neglect and solitude. At least it didn't feel as restrictive as the last one. Unlike the room she had woken up in, this one had more windows and at a level more accessible to looking out of them. It also had, in addition to the bed, a desk, a bedside table and a large amount of floor space. The walls were made of the same thick stone as the corridors. Except for bars on the windows and a locked door, it could be a prison cell.

Elsa swung her legs, the same way she had fourteen years ago on the first day she'd locked herself away from the world. It was calming, being alone in silence again. Ever since the end of the winter she hadn't had more than a moment to herself. Not that Elsa hadn't cherished, even loved the newfound contact she had with Anna and her people but after being all alone for three years following the death of her parents, it had become such a part of her life that she couldn't let it go.

Apparently confining rooms was another part of that past that refused to die.

Granted, she'd spent most of her life locked away but she hadn't minded it that much. It had been necessary, something she'd had to do to keep everyone safe. It was only since she'd had her recent taste of freedom that she realized just how terrible being in a cage truly was.

The meeting in the chapel was long over. Scara had gone off to 'prepare a little surprise' and Garret had offered to take Elsa to her new room and help her get settled. Theo had remained in the chapel, muttering darkly and avoiding making eye contact with everyone. Now Garret had vanished to find her more furnishings and some food.

Elsa doubted anything he would bring her would ever make this place feel like anything but just another prison.

_Anna…_

If her sister were here she'd know exactly how to make this room feel warm and livable. Even when a room was empty, simply having Anna around made it seem like the room was someplace people actually lived, not just another empty room of a castle.

Elsa sighed, a soft flurry of snowflakes escaping with the exhale. She missed Anna so much.

_I wonder if she found the sculpture… I wonder if she's still upset…_

Elsa tightened her grip on the bed frame and it acquired a thin coating of ice. She looked out the window and saw the edge of a forest. They were probably high in the mountains somewhere, none of the trees were particularly tall but the forest was thick. Obviously the Arendelle logging businesses hadn't reached this swath of woods yet. That was, if they were even still in Arendelle lands.

The bright, burning sunlight of the setting summer sun lit up the room as it sunk into the trees. That would make this the end of the first day since she'd gone missing from Arendelle. By now, people were sure to have noticed. Anna was sure to be worried.

_I wonder if she's looking for me. I wonder if she just thinks I'm hiding again._

"This is _your_ room you know."

Elsa turned to the voice and smiled kindly at the speaker.

"Doesn't really feel like home."

Goren rolled into the room but quickly un-tucked himself to avoid another sleeping episode. "Then maybe you should make it more like home." He suggested. "Hang some drapes, maybe a little color, something blue and subtle."

A smile tugged at Elsa's lips. "Surely you're not suggesting I coat the floors in ice and snow and let icicles hang from the ceiling?"

Goren nodded. "It might help." He said. The troll leapt up beside her on the bed and began to pull various food stuffs from gods knew where. "Scara's room is a living forest and Theo keeps her room at a balmy 90 degrees or so." He told Elsa as he laid out a hunk of bread, a large wad of cheese and some small fruits on her table. "But I'm not sure if they do that for themselves or for Branna and Livet's sakes."

"Probably both." Elsa said picking up a fruit and nibbling on it, thinking longingly of her ice castle in the mountains. Why couldn't she be there?

Goren paused in his arranging of the food. "It may help Isen come out of your shell." He said quietly.

Elsa sighed but kept her rising frustration under control as only a queen could. "Why is it so important for me to draw her out?" She asked Goren. She didn't particularly like the thought of having some kind of spirit deep inside her, sharing her mind and skin. Where had that spirit been all those years in isolation? All those times her life had been in danger during the eternal winter? "I'm doing fine on my own."

"You are." Goren acknowledged. "Remarkably well. I haven't read records of a host with your control since Ileana, Isen's first host."

He patted along the bed frame until he was close enough to lay a comforting hand on her arm. "But connecting with Isen isn't just about learning who shares your body and gave you your powers. The connection quite literally links you to the soul of winter itself. You feel everything in the winter, you _are_ every snowflake that falls, every icicle that drips into being. You no longer just create the elements, you _are_ the element. Your powers may double, exceed your wildest dreams even!"

Until two days ago, Elsa had never been particularly interested in letting her powers grow. Now however, the troll's words intrigued her. "How so?"

Goren's gaze was focused out the window but she could see his eyes gleaming like he was recalling a favorite legend. "My father knew hosts of Isen's who could build glaciers in the middle of summer, who could shape and sculpt the ice of winter into impossible structures and heal wounds with their breath. One was even able to carve the land 's waterways using ice and snow. Ileana was said to have been able to create life when she let Isen control her body."

Elsa looked down at her hands and experimentally flexed her fingers.

"The ice becomes a living, breathing shield protecting you and those you love." Goren continued. "It moves without you even consciously telling it to." Elsa's head shot up at that but she kept quiet.

"Not to mention you also get someone inside your head to give you help and advice who has literally lived for thousands of years. Isen is one of the more tame spirits." Goren assured Elsa. "She's nothing like Branna's fire. She doesn't tend to lash out."

"So how does one do it?" Elsa asked. "Draw out the spirit?"

"Depends on the host. Sometimes the spirit awakens in times of great distress. Others have to be coaxed out through meditations with your element."

"Meditations with your element?"

"Surrounding yourself with your creations and conversing with them." Goren said. "Theo does it all the time, particularly in the winter, you could ask her for advice."

Elsa much preferred to think she would never ask the uptight, temperamental Theo for advice on _anything_. Not even something like this. No, _especially_ not something like this.

Someone knocked on the door. Two short raps on the thick wood.

"Come in!" Elsa called, standing up to greet the newcomer. Garret entered the room, holding a stack of blue sheets.

"Found these for you." He told Elsa. "Thought they would match the ice."

Elsa nodded in gratitude. "Thank you Garret."

"You haven't settled in yet." Garret pointed out, glancing pointedly at the ceiling, floors and walls that he clearly expected to be covered in ice. He stood in the doorway, not moving any closer, the sheets still folded over his arm.

"Not planning to." Elsa replied.

Garret's brow creased in surprise and confusion but he said nothing.

Elsa turned back to Goren. "This meditation…" She began. "Would it work somewhere I created?"

The troll thought for a moment. "I suppose so, any place you felt particularly connected to the world around you through your powers."

Elsa felt a genuine smile turn up her lips for the first time all day. "Garret, I think I know of a way to allow me to talk to Isen." She told the guardian.

Garret's face lit up, his eyes warming up considerably. "Great! What can I do to help?" He asked.

Elsa folded her hands in front of her. "I need you to get me out of here." She told him in her best court voice.

Garret's smile wavered. "You know I can't let you just walk out of here." He reminded her. "Against Theo's orders and the Mother's doctrine. I'd be duty bound to keep you from running away."

"I'm not running away." Elsa assured him, clasping her hands tightly at the mention of 'Theo's orders'. "I have somewhere I want to go. Somewhere where I first felt really connected to my powers. Somewhere I actually felt pride in my abilities. I want you to take me there."

Goren glanced between the two, his expression making it hard to determine who he was siding with.

Garret bit the left side of his bottom lip, his eyes darting from Goren to Elsa to the sheets in his hands as if they had something to do with his decision.

Elsa waited patiently, her gaze never wavering. She knew he was faltering. She just had to tip that falter to her advantage. She could read Garret, he was a sensible man, bound by duty but with a soft spot for those he protected. She hadn't quite made it into that spot yet but she was close she was sure.

Finally, the guardian let out a sigh and placed the sheets down on the bed. "I'll talk to Theo." Garret told Elsa with a defeated sigh. "She's not unreasonable but she is stubborn. But she owes me one, so I'll see what I can do. Come with me."

As he turned away to lead them out of the room, Elsa allowed herself a small triumphant smile.

"Don't get confident." Garret said without turning around as the three of them left Elsa's room. "I don't give so easily when your safety is on the line."

Goren winked at Elsa. "Scara keeps asking to travel to Corona to see the spring time there. Fourteen years and he hasn't budged an inch on that issue."

"I know all the tricks." Garret replied. "I grew up protecting Theo and Scara from themselves and the dangers of the world. I've seen it all: the eyes, the smile, the screaming…" He shot a glance over his shoulder at Elsa that was one part kind, one part dominating and perhaps just a little seductive. Elsa felt her heart jump to her throat and stick in place.

Garret ran his thumb along the side of his nose, mirroring the smirk on his face. "There is no trick you know I can't resist."

* * *

Theo was back in the isolation room. It was becoming something of an obsession with her to enter the dream-like state that allowed her to fully merge her consciousness with that of the fire-spirit. She suspected it was because of the waning summer and her desire to milk as much use out of the strength the summer gave her before the seasons turned again. But she was not here to link herself to Branna again.

The summer host spun in the center of the room, softly releasing the flames from her fingers. They scattered across the wall, several of them hitting and lighting the torches hung on the walls but most of them hitting the stones and fizzling out.

Theo growled under her breath, thinking of Elsa's fine control of the snowflake in the chapel. She clenched her fist and the torches on the wall fared briefly in her anger.

_How does she do that? And at the time she should have been weakest?_

Kicking her legs up into the air, Theo began to dance in earnest. Sparks burst to life along her arms as they cut through the air. A burst of flame seared across the wall as she kicked one leg high. She dropped and spun and a crippling heat wave burst from under her feet and rippled up the wall. She was the summer, she was the heat and the fire and the winds that carried the rains. A tear came to her eye as she jumped and twisted. The dance went on, a frightening and beautiful blending of fire and movement until it seemed Theo herself was just another dancing flame in the black grate of the isolation room.

After a few minutes, Theo stopped, panting smoke from between her lips.

_I wonder if Elsa has ever danced..._

There were simply too many unanswered questions and anomalies when it came to the Queen of Arendelle. Theo hated mysteries.

She felt a slight twinge in her gut but ignored it as best she could. She didn't want to deal with that right now.

As she so often did when she was stressed out, the sand began to form in her hands. Without even a conscious thought, her hands became white hot. Blowing softly, she added air to the mixture until it achieved a thick, molten viscosity that was almost transparent. Her other hand gently pulled the fluid into shape, pulling excess heat from it as she did so. Slowly, a glass ball took shape above her hands, looking more like a drop of reflective liquid then a solid object as it pulsed with residual heat.

Theo released it and left it to cool floating in the still air. The hot glass glowed softly with red light, casting more light than torches around her.

Briefly, Theo wondered if Elsa's ice powers glowed with a light of their own the same way hers did in the summer. They probably did. They probably glowed all the time.

She felt the twinge again, only this time, an unwelcome thought accompanied it.

_Don't ignore me, Theonia_.

Theo looked upwards into the dark recesses of the ceiling in exasperation. "I don't really have much of a choice…" She formed a flame in her hand and then smothered it absently just to have some semblance of control.

_When a host ignores one of us, it only makes things worse…don't you remember the stories I told you about your predecessors?_

"No please Branna," Theo moaned, letting her head fall into her hands dramatically. "No more life lessons from past hosts…" She collapsed onto the meditation mat she had spread out in the room.

_300 years ago, I had a host… Belle, no… Nora I think…one of them that century anyway…they tried to ignore me for three years. It was terrible, without their consent, my power came unbounded. Everything she touched melted or caught fire, even in the winter. Summer heat melted all of the ice in the far north…there was flooding, landslides, the ocean itself fought back! An entire city vanished beneath the seas…_

"Branna!" Theo interrupted. It was like talking to herself. If she was more inclined to ramble and considerably less concerned about time. "Was there a specific reason you decided to invade my thoughts this time?"

_You need to calm down and think about this_.

"About what? About her? I shouldn't even be sparing her a thought right now! It was supposed to be simple! Finding her was supposed to be our big break in the search! Instead she has made this whole thing twice as complicated and four times as irritating! I wasn't supposed to deal with a royal! Who can deal with a royal?" Branna was mercifully silent on that matter. "We don't have a lot of time before the cycle turns and we lose this power again. If I can't reach Død soon, all could be lost."

Theo took a few deep breaths to calm herself and bring the flames in the torches down. Her glass ball had been blazing with light during her outburst. "And Elsa was able to do these things when her powers should have been weakest." She finally mumbled in defeat.

_Are you jealous?_

Theo sighed. "Is there any point in lying?"

_Not to me_.

"She was our last hope of contacting Død." Theo whispered, wrapping her arms tightly around herself. "Now what are we going to do?"

_There are other ways we can search. We can always wait for the wheel to turn further and let Livet and her host engage Død as the winter sets in. And let us not give up on Isen. She's in there somewhere, she's probably just afraid to come out after what happened to her last host._

"What did happen?" Theo had never gotten the spirit to open up about what had happened to Isen's previous host, it was something both of the spirits and the records had been uncharacteristically silent about.

_We didn't get there in time. Our partners had just backed out on their roll and we couldn't find the host. An eternal winter set in in the providence of Weselton and Isen's host was murdered to bring it to an end. Their winters have been short and mild since, causing harvest amounts to shrink and rivers to dry up. _

_It wasn't long after that that the other hosts died and the cycle began again. For the longest time the temple was empty, no one but the record-keeper._

Theo stared at her glass orb, which had solidified. "I know this part already, why tell me again?"

_Because obviously we missed something. Something important. Elsa was kept from the temple for twenty-one years, a more than sufficient amount of time for Isen to make herself known and guide her host here. Isen must have known the temple was empty, she must have known that awakening early would have made her the Head for the first time in almost 500 years. But she didn't take it._

"I thought you spirits were above the whole 'squabbling like humans over positions' political dance…"

_Don't be smart Theonia…I can make your headache considerably worse…_

Theo smirked but it faded when her head ached mercilessly.  
_Isen is up to something. She's using Elsa for something. There has never been a host like her before_.

"Agreed. How can a royal be a host? I thought only the most worthy were chosen?"

_And those cannot be royals?_

"They have never been before."

_Times change._

"Well, what does that mean?"

A double knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. Theo's head shot up. She knew that tap.

"Theo?"

"Come in!" Theo called, unfolding herself from the floor. Garret entered the room, followed by Elsa and Goren.

"Do you have a moment?" Garret asked her. "There is something we need to discuss."

Theo nodded. "I was just conversing with Branna." she told Garret but her eyes darted to Elsa.

Elsa's eyes were fixated on the floating ball and Theo smirked as she noticed the thinly veiled amazement on the queen's face.

_You have your snowflakes, I have my orbs. _She thought triumphantly. She snapped her fingers and the orb fell into her hand. Elsa looked away from her sharply as if trying to hide that she had been interested in the ball. The blonde ran her finger absently along the wall and seemed surprised when it came away covered in soot. Scara had reacted the same way when she realized the walls of this room were not actually painted black.

"Elsa had a suggestion to help her contact Isen." Garret was saying.

"She can't go home." Theo interrupted turning away to place the orb gently on her mat.

"That is not her suggestion." Garret said calmly as Elsa started to open her mouth. "It's actually quite ingenious."

He turned back to Elsa and offered her a smile. Theo felt her stomach clench as Elsa bowed her head slightly in a regal acknowledgement of Garret.

"There is somewhere I can go." The Snow Queen began. "I built a palace of ice in the mountains when I fled Arendelle during the winter storm. It is a place of utter solitude and cold. When I'm there I feel the closest connection to my powers. I think I'd be able to speak to Isen, as you put it, if I spend enough time there."

It took a good four seconds for the words to register in Theonia's mental picture. "Wait…wait. You built a palace of ice? Where?"

"The North Mountain." Elsa replied.

"You do realize that is the absolutely worst way to hide right?"

Elsa's left eyebrow twitched at Theo's condescending tone but otherwise her face remained infuriatingly calm. "What do you mean?"

"You went to the mountain to be alone, so you built a palace of ice and just assumed, 'oh, no one will notice…'"

"Yes I did." Elsa's voice was flat and calm but Theo saw her fist clench. "And it worked out fine."

A razor-sharp smile graced Theo's face. "Uh huh, how many days did it last before someone stormed the castle?"

Elsa hesitated, her mask slipping slightly. "Two…" She finally admitted.

"Exactly. You can't go." Theo turned away, barely concealing a triumphant smile. "It's too conspicuous, too far away and too close to the place you are trying to run back too. I can't keep an eye on you, Garret can't protect you and I can't trust you not to run away."

"Now wait a minute," Elsa implored in a slightly harder voice. "you want me to contact my spirit, I really feel like this could be the way to go."

Theo ignored her which she knew would only infuriate the queen further. "Goren, tell her why she can't go."

"Actually I think it could be a good way to reach out."

Theo's neck nearly snapped at the speed with which she turned it. "What?" She growled, furious for the troll's betrayal.

"Previous hosts have had great successes contacting their spirits in meditations." Goren pointed out. "I think Elsa being in her ice palace would be equivalent to you in this room. It would focus the energy and help her see deeper."

"Besides, I would go with her of course." Garret spoke up. "Protect her and keep an eye on her."

Those words terrified Theo even more than accidentally setting fire to Scara's room would. "No you will not, what about the rest of us?"

"Well… it… I…" Garret trailed off and ducked his head to avoid Theo's piercing gaze.

"Oh I see." Theo said slowly, eyes moving slowly from the guardian to Elsa to the troll. Only one of the three would meet her eyes. She let the uncomfortable silence hang in the room.

As predicted, Elsa was the one who broke it. "If my presence bothers you so much, I'd be glad to take my leave and never return."

Theo met her gaze with a look cool enough to rival the ice queen's. "It would give me great pleasure for you to do as your told, for once." She said smoothly. "I am not here to accommodate your every wish."

"I am a queen."

"As I keep being reminded." Theo snapped back with enough venom to make Garret take a step back. "This is not your kingdom, _your majesty_. And you would do well to remember your place!"

"Well you were the one who kidnapped me. And you seem to be the only one really stuck on forcing me to stay."

Elsa didn't know what happened, suddenly there was a wall of ice that barely sprung up in time to block an enormous fireball. The ice shield slowly melted into a puddle, revealing Theo. Her body was coiled like a spring, the fingers on her outstretched hand smoking.

"I am forcing you to stay because this is how it is meant to be!" She hissed, smoke leaking from her lips. "The world is significantly larger than your tiny kingdom and like it or not, you have a role to play in it that does not extend to being a queen. You are and always have been one of us and you will follow my rules and obey my commands!"

Elsa found herself losing her cool entirely. She'd had enough of this insane woman lashing out at her. "You are infuriating!" She spat at the woman. "You cannot treat any of us like this, like your subjects!"

"You are a spoiled brat!" Theo shouted back. "Who are you to judge me for treating people like _subjects_?"

Without thinking, Elsa shot a flurry of ice shards and wet snow in the woman's direction with blinding speed. It collided with the column of fire Theo had released in the space between them and the two swallowed each other. With a hiss, the entire room filled with blinding, choking steam.

As the fog cleared, Garret was quite suddenly in between them. He didn't say a single word but his intentions were etched so deeply into his face that they were impossible to miss. He would not let them harm each other. He would stop them if he had to.

"Elsa, Goren, I wonder if you could give Theo and myself a moment alone?" Garret asked, with a pointed look at Theonia.

Elsa glanced between them, the tension so thick she could have sliced it with an icicle. "Of course." She gave Theo a stiff inclination of the neck then turned on her heel and left the room, breathing hard to try to get herself under control. Snow kept gathering at her fingertips that she kept willing away. Goren briefly considered the humans remaining in the room then tucked himself into a ball and rolled backwards out of the room after Elsa.

"What is going on with you?" Garret asked as the door closed.

"Don't ask me." Theo snarled. "I blame her." She scooped up the glass ball from her mat and furiously tossed it from hand to hand to force her palms to cool down.

"Don't." Garret said sternly. "She's actually very smart and incredibly insightful."

"I thought you had distanced yourself from all human desires?" Theo asked through her teeth.

"I'm not blind." Garret replied in an equally dry voice. "And you have not made the slightest effort to get to know her since she has arrived."

"That is just as much her fault as it is mine."

"Is it though?" Garret asked. "Have you two said more than three words to each other without having it descend into a shouting match?"

Theo didn't reply but she hurled the glass ball angrily against the wall. It shattered into tiny fragments and littered the floor like a storm of ice shards.

"You can at least ask the Mother." Garret advised Theo.

"I already have."

The corner of Garret's mouth lifted in a small smile. "She's going to go." He said when Theo gave no indication to mention what the Mother had commanded. "I honestly think it will help her."

Theo was silent.

"Complain all you want but in the end, you really only care about fixing this problem." Garret said, taking full advantage of Theo's silence to gently lecture her. "You letting Elsa get to you has nothing to do with this apparent power structure imbalance in your head."

Theo shifted away from him, pretending she wasn't listening by focusing on one of the torches. The flames began to twist and curl into tiny flowers and vines as she focused intently on them.

Garret watched silently for a moment, letting his words sink in. "I'd better prepare to escort Elsa to the North Mountain." He finally said. He bowed to Theo and turned to leave the room.

"No."

The voice surprised him. He turned around with his hand on the doorknob. "Theo?"

Theo smothered the torch with her hands before turning to face Garret. "I'm going with Elsa. I need you here to look after Scara. You know how weak Spring gets as Autumn sets in. And I need you to keep on the tail of Autumn. I don't like it when a name vanishes from the Død scroll. We have to find out why."

Garret took a moment to contemplate his answer before speaking. "Why are you going to accompany her?" He finally asked in a neutral tone of voice, as if trying not to startle a bird.

"Does there have to be a reason?" Theo said, sounding tired.

"No, but I'm a little concerned that both of you will not return from this trip. At least not fully intact."

"Call it an experiment."

Garret fought to keep a wicked smile off his face. "Come on Theo, just because the legend is written that way doesn't mean you two are actually…"

"Garret!" She whirled to face him, a small tongue of flame bursting from between her lips. Garret was already in position, ready to paralyze her if he had to but his eyes were still glinting with mirth. Theo's eyes briefly flickered down to his fingers then back to his eyes. "That is the last thing on my mind. I merely want to see her control in action, learn what it is she does to do…what she does. How she does it."

"Eloquently put." Garret congratulated her, biting his lip. "You should lead with that when you two are alone."

"I swear to the Mother, if you were not protected by her grace I would burn your soul to hell right now…"

He grinned, glad she was in a better mood now. Or at least her anger was redirected at him. "I'd see you there I'm sure."

"Garret," Theonia said, suddenly very serious. "if she can help me learn how to make the flames vanish on command, do you know how many lives I could save? How many forests?"

Garret placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You can't change the past Theo…" He told her gently.

She sighed and leaned against him. "But I can prepare for the future."

* * *

It took Kristoff until sunset to reach the Valley of the Living Rock.

"Guys!" He shouted, jumping down from the sled and hurrying to unhook Sven. "Wake up! We've got a problem!"

Olaf hopped down from the sled, wiggling his slightly slushy legs. He'd managed to avoid melting entirely by hiding out in the dungeons until Kristoff came to take him up into the cold air of the mountains. His snow cloud had not reappeared but being this high in the mountains had stopped his body from melting further.

"So tell me again why we're visiting your rock family?" Olaf asked Kristoff.

"They know all the tales and legends of the land." Kristoff explained, rubbing Sven anxiously. "They'll know where this barb came from and most likely, who shot it."

"They'll know where Elsa went?" Olaf asked, leaning on a rock next to him.

"Yes, Olaf." Kristoff said, rubbing Sven's neck to keep himself calm. He'd decided not to tell Olaf the truth yet about why Elsa had vanished. He hadn't wanted the snowman to worry the whole way here. The snowman hadn't exactly figure out that Elsa being shot with a dart meant she hadn't left of her own free will.

"Great! Then she can come home!"

Kristoff nodded absently. He certainly hoped that was what would happen. Sven bumped him gently to remind him that they would figure this out.

The rock Olaf was leaning on suddenly shuddered and popped open to reveal Bulda, Kristoff's adopted mother.

"Kristoff!" She shouted, jumping up into his arms for a hug. Kristoff stumbled a little under her weight but hugged her back, blowing her grassy hair out of his face.

Her shout seemed to have been the alarm call for all the other trolls. With a noise like a crashing wave, the stones of the valley all rolled forward and popped to life. Kristoff spent the next few minutes trying to get his family to calm down enough to listen to him.

"That's great everyone…really great but there's something I need too…" His request was interrupted by Syonte jumping onto his foot to beg him to lift her up.

"Let him speak!" Bulda finally shouted and all the others reluctantly quieted down.

"Go on Kristoff," Bulda urged him, her eyes lighting up the way they had when they'd thought he'd brought Anna as his girlfriend. Kristoff knew he was about to disappoint them all again.

"Elsa's been kidnapped!" He told them. Kristoff pulled the barb out of his pocket and held it out towards Bulda. "Someone shot her with this and took her away!" Bulda's eye locked on the barb and she backed away slowly, all happiness gone from her expression.

"Yeah, Elsa's been kidnapped!" Olaf echoed happily. "Wait…what does that mean?"

Kristoff patted Olaf on the head, a silent promise that he would explain later.

To his surprise, none of the trolls looked shocked or even worried. Instead, an eerie silence spread across the assembly like a blanket of snow. Softly, the sea of rocky bodies split to allow Pabbie to roll forward to Kristoff.

Kristoff dropped to his knees. "Grand Pabbie…" Kristoff was surprised he was up twice in one week. The troll had been known to sleep for weeks at a time, unable to come out of hibernation because of his old age.

Pabbie groaned softly as he looked up at Kristoff's face. "I knew this day would come…" The ancient troll said sadly. "I just hoped it would be far in the future. Perhaps past Elsa's time."

"What is it Grand Pabbie? Who's taken Elsa?"

Pabbie took one of Kristoff's hands in his own, his rough skin scraping against Kristoff's hardened palms. He regarded the barb laying there as if it were a dear friend who had done him a great wrong. "Elsa… has returned to the bosom of the Mother." He said softly.

"The what?"

"Kristoff, among the trolls, there are stories that I have forbidden the others from telling the humans, even yourself."

Pabbie slowly stumbled towards the center of the clearing, the others parting to let him through. "In every generation," Pabbie began, waving his hands. "there are four girls doomed to a life of solitude and servitude: Branna, Livet, Isen and Død." His hands glowed with magic and the air above his head shifted until shapes began to form. Four women appeared, each of them a different color: red, blue, green and gray. "Ages ago, the souls of the seasons were banished to the Earth by the Mother. Unable to build bodies for themselves, they were forced to invade another's." The four figures suddenly seemed surrounded by a thick haze the same color as their bodies. "The spirits select them in the womb and enter them at the moment of their birth." Pabbie said. "They give them great powers but doom them to a life of servitude. The girls must be taken to the palace of the Mother, where they live in isolation from the outside world in order to guard their exposure to the world and keep the seasons in check." As Pabbie spoke, the figures in the air followed his diction, gathering in a group in a hazy building. "Their emotions trigger the weather patterns of their spirit parasite, just as Elsa's fear set off Arendelle's eternal winter."

The blue figure broke off from the others and wandered off on her own, casting snowflakes around her.

"When we learned of Elsa's existence, we had hoped the cycle would be changing, perhaps even ending. We did our best to hide her away, until she could control her powers. But it seems the others finally became aware of her existence." As he spoke, the blue figure began to resemble Elsa. First it hid itself in a stone cage then it broke free, then the other figures confronted it and carried it back to themselves. Pabbie pointed at the barb in Kristoff's hand. "That barb is used only as an absolute last resort to bring the hosts to the Temple. They waited too long, Elsa was too powerful when they tried to take her. So they had to use the sleeper potion to suppress her powers. And now the consequences are known: cold ceased to exist for several hours."

Kristoff, Olaf and Sven silently watched the figures retreat to a large cage. There they formed a circle and swayed back and forth. Even the snowman seemed quieted by the display. Olaf's eyes were wide with sorrow and fear. "Why did you hide Elsa, Grand Pabbie?" Kristoff asked. "I thought you tried not to get involved with the affairs of humans?"

Pabbie closed his hands and the figures faded. He turned to face Kristoff, Sven and Olaf, his eyes overflowing with sorrow and guilt.

"Because Kristoff, not so very long ago, it was us who stole the children from their families and took them to the Temple."

Kristoff didn't know what to say. He glanced around at the others but only the youngest of them would meet his eyes.

"But…why?"

"The Mother charged us with this when the spirits were first incarnated as humans." Pabbie said. "Whenever a child host was revealed, it was our sacred duty to take her from society and deliver her to the temple. I cut off our involvement. We could no longer steal the children of the humans, no matter the reason. But there was one family line that remained dedicated to the Temple cause."

"You don't mean…Goren?" Kristoff had met the troll only once many years ago. It had been late, he and Sven were supposed to have been asleep but the shouting had woken them. The trolls never shouted. He'd snuck into the cave where Pabbie held meetings and he'd seen Pabbie speaking angrily to a younger troll and a much smaller troll who couldn't have been much older than a toddler.

"Yes. Goren and his son chose to leave the tribe to continue their dedication to the Mother." Pabbie said. "They returned one night to ask us for help in finding the Autumn and Winter hosts. By that time, we knew of Elsa's identity but kept our silence out of respect to the royal family."

Kristoff was quiet for a long time, letting it all sink in. Olaf laid a gentle hand on his, trying to offer comfort but it wasn't really helping.

He'd known the trolls had secrets they couldn't tell him, it was just part of his life being raised by ancient, wise beings. But to have a secret so shameful and dark? Kristoff dealt with a lot of tough things but this…this might possibly be the toughest.

Bulda was looking at him in concern, like she wanted to run and hug him but was afraid he would push her away.

Kristoff turned back to Pabbie to avoid looking at his heartbroken mother. "When did you stop doing this?" He asked.

"At the beginning of the current cycle." Pabbie replied, his gravelly voice catching slightly. "Just about the time Elsa was born."

"Why then?"

"We suspected something was different about this cycle when the weather patterns began to change inexplicably after the birth of the princess." Pabbie began. "So even when we learned of the births of Død, Branna and Livet's hosts, we refused our duty to retrieve them. And when Elsa came here as a child, I knew that she was not like the other hosts. She was unlike any of her predecessors. Her power ran deeper, stronger, it could not be separated from her."

"Separated?"

"The hosts are selected by the spirits completely subjectively. All the power comes from the spirit themselves. So long as the spirit is within her, she can create ice and snow. Should the spirit choose to leave her however, her powers would vanish." Pabbie paused, as if contemplating casting more visions in the air but then shook his head. "But when I first laid eyes on Elsa and saw her powers, the burden that had been laid upon her, I grew afraid. Her powers did not wax and wane as the others' did. They only grew stronger as she grew older. It was dangerous to let her go to the Temple. Her emotions were too strong. I knew I could not separate her from her family, especially not from her sister. The trigger was too deeply imprinted on her. If I had taken her away, she would have lost control entirely."

"What would have happened?"

"You just saw it." Pabbie replied.

Kristoff recalled the winter, the storm, the blinding whiteout that had almost toppled Arendelle and taken Anna away from him forever. He shivered.

The valley was silent for a long time as Kristoff poured over all the new information. Even Sven didn't make a sound. Olaf fidgeted but kept silent as well.

"What do we do about everything melting?" Kristoff finally asked.

"Nothing." Pabbie replied. "As soon as Elsa overcomes the effect of the potion, cold will return and nature will eventually recover."

Kristoff nodded, glad that both Olaf and his business would be alright. "Where do I find Elsa?"

"We cannot reveal the location of the Temple." Pabbie informed him."We ourselves do not know where it is. Only Goren does."

Kristoff sighed softly in agitation. "What can I do to get her back then?"

"She cannot leave the Temple. Not without the Mother's consent." Pabbie said. "The Head Councilor will be forcing her to stay."

"So what, I have to appeal to the Mother?" Kristoff wasn't liking this. He wasn't a religious person and he generally didn't like dealing with others on principle. He was a man of action, not a man of words.

"I have a feeling Elsa is trying her best to escape." Pabbie said, a small smile coming to his hard face. "And if she does… I think we both know the place she would go to hide."

"Oh! Oh! I know! I know!" Olaf, unable to keep silent any longer, was jumping up and down, holding one of his arms above his head. "I know where Elsa would go!"

* * *

Elsa had retreated to the highest open place she could find, which just happened to be a rooftop balcony two floors above her room. There seemed to be no end to this stone fortress. She'd gotten lost twice just trying to make her way up here.

Now she sat on the edge of the balcony, letting her legs swing over the courtyard below. Most unbecoming of a queen but she didn't particularly care at this moment. She gazed out over the forest, trying once again to figure out just where she was. But even this high up, there was nothing to see but stunted forest and hills for miles in every direction. Far in the distance, just to the right of the setting sun there was a mountain but it was so obscured by clouds she couldn't be certain it was the North Mountain.

"Elsa?" For a split second, Elsa thought Anna was calling her and turned sharply.

"I've been looking all over for you!" Scara said brightly. She danced lightly up to Elsa, a thick trail of wildflowers and vines dragging on the ground behind her.

"I thought you could hang them in your room, over the windows." She said holding the curtain out to Elsa. "They bloom at night and close during the day. It'll be like having curtains that open with the sun and close with the dark." She leaned closer to Elsa. "They're also cold-resistant." She whispered with a wink.

Elsa took the flowers gently. "Thank you Scara." They were indeed beautiful and surprisingly fragrant.

Scara plunked herself down next to Elsa, her legs taking up a similar rhythm of swinging. "So what have you been up to?" She asked. "Do you like your room? Have you decorated yet?"

Elsa suspected Scara had not yet found out about the argument between herself and Theo. "No," she replied, softly running the curtain of flowers through her hands. "I haven't decorated yet. But these will be a nice start, thanks."

"Why not?"

Elsa momentarily toyed with the idea of telling Scara everything that had happened but she did not. She could clearly see how the younger girl looked up to Theo in spite of her aggravating flaws. "It'll remind me too much of home. And of my ice palace."

"You built an ice _palace!?_" Scara was openly gaping at Elsa now. "Where?"

Elsa chuckled, glad for the younger girl's response. "The North Mountain. Every room is made entirely of ice. Everything in them is sculpted from the ice. When the sun sets, the entire castle glows red and orange."

"I'd love to see that!"

Elsa smiled openly. "I'll have to decorate my room just like it."

Scara giggled. "Maybe Theo will take us there sometime!"

Elsa turned away so that Scara wouldn't see her angry scowl. "Somehow I don't think she will."

The spring girl shrugged. "Yeah, you're probably right." Scara gestured towards the fading silhouette of the mountain in the distance. "The mountain's not too far from here." She said, confirming Elsa's suspicions. "But Theo, she's too careful. We don't go places unless absolutely necessary. She was on her own with her powers for a long time so she tends to get rather agitated in new places."

Elsa sighed. "Yeah I know the feeling." While she hated that she and the fire-girl now had something in common, she couldn't help feeling a little sorry for her. She knew all too well how hard it was to hide such power. Constantly worrying about just a little bit slipping through, the fear that a single touch could give you away…

Scara's hand on her own broke Elsa from her thoughts. "She means well. She just wasn't meant to shoulder this burden."

Elsa scoffed. "What? The one where she gets to boss us all around?"

"It's her duty." Scara told her. "She's the first-awakened of the Council. Her spirit presented itself to her when she was eight, so by birthright, she became the Head Councilor."

"So that would make you second?"

Scara shook her head. "Oh no, I'm third. We know Død has been awake for a long time. In fact we're certain of it. She awakened about the same time as Branna. Her host just hasn't come to terms with her yet, which is why we're so desperate to find her. Her powers are most likely spiraling out of control while they figure out who's in charge of the body."

Elsa's heart sank. "So does that make me…?"

"Yep, by birthright, you're actually the lowest on the Council because Isen hasn't actually awakened yet."

"Great." She was without power here, doomed to the commands of someone else. She didn't like it.

"Theo's not such a bad ruler." Scara assured her, "She's tough but reasonable. She's always kept me safe, even at her own expense."

Elsa was quiet, watching the young woman next to her. Scara swung her legs with a small smile on her face, reminding Elsa so much of her sister it physically hurt. It was clear just how much Scara loved Theo but she hadn't realized that Theo's whole tough act might just be another expression of an overwhelming desire to protect someone else even at the cost of your own safety and sanity.

Great, something else she had in common with her.

"Elsa." The two of them turned to the voice. Theo stood behind them. It was impossible to tell exactly how long she had been there but Elsa was willing to bet she had heard the whole conversation. Her eyes darted briefly to Scara then back to Elsa. "How soon can you be ready to leave for the North Mountain?" She asked in a clipped voice.

Elsa couldn't believe she had just heard those words. "You're letting me go?" She clarified.

"We're going to Elsa's ice palace?!" Scara said hopefully.

Theo's expression didn't waver. "Well? When would it be convenient for her highness to take her leave?"

Elsa ignored the heavy sarcasm. "I don't exactly have anything to take with me." She replied.

"Good, you and I will leave in an hour." Theo turned on her heel and went back to the trapdoor that led off the roof, still ignoring Scara who now looked crestfallen that she would not be going with them.

Elsa nearly slipped off the roof in her haste to stand. "We?" She asked in confusion, scrambling to catch the train of flowers.

Theo stuck her head back up onto the roof. "Yes. I'm coming." She clarified. "You're going to need someone to help you converse with Isen when we awaken her." She smiled at Elsa but it could not easily be called a pleasant smile and continued on her way.

Elsa closed her lips around her protest. "Wonderful." She managed to say. _ I can already feel the tranquility setting in…_

"I'm jealous." Scara said sadly. "I wish I could come with you two."

Elsa could already tell that this trip was not going to end well.

* * *

"How does Elsa do this?"

Anna slammed the book shut on the desk, sending several papers scuttling off the desk to the floor. With a huff of frustration, she bent to retrieve them, her aching spine protesting the movement. Anna had been sitting at her sister's desk for the past five, no…six hours reviewing what could only be trade agreements from hell.

Elsa had mentioned this plan to her once and it had seemed like a wonderful idea. Increase trade with Corona and North Melonia to provide subsidies to the businesses hurt by the winter. Elsa hadn't mentioned just how difficult all the paperwork was going to be.

Requests were pouring in from all over the kingdom of businesses demanding various forms of compensation for the three-day winter. Corona wanted a long-term agreement that eventually would be mutually beneficial for years but the commodities they demanded cycled over the years and cycles were unpredictable at best. North Melonia wanted ice. Magical ice from the queen.

Anna let her head fall forward onto the desk with a loud thump. The numbers just weren't adding up. Arendelle couldn't provide the amount of fish demanded by Corona because the cycles were currently on a lull. Arendelle couldn't provide magical ice because all of it had just melted. Even with these new trades, Arendelle was looking at a deficit that could stretch the royal coffers to their maximum to meet the requests of all the citizens.

"Elsa made this look so easy…" Anna mumbled into the desk.

It had been a very trying day for the young princess. She'd hoped people wouldn't notice if Elsa was missing, after all, the Queen did have a bit of a reputation as a recluse.

She'd failed to remember however that there was kind of a giant sign hanging (or rather, dripping) all over the castle that the Queen was gone.

"Where is the Queen?" Several townspeople had asked her as they stood ankle deep in the water left from the melted ice rink, watching Elsa's decorations slide off the castle.

"Queen Elsa was called away on urgent business to the far North." Anna had lied far more smoothly than she should have been able to. Her insides were still clenched with fear for her sister. "She will be back in a few days. In the meantime, I am Acting Reagent." The townspeople had bought this, although some with a little more complaining than others. Anna hadn't liked the hushed whispers the blacksmith and some of the merchants had had as they left the courtyard. But the people trusted Anna and many of them respected her for the way she had handled the challenges of the eternal winter. But it didn't make Anna feel any better.

Anna groaned and lifted her face just enough that she could rub her aching eyes. "Elsa where are you?"

"Princess Anna?"

Her head shot up, a piece of paper stuck to the corner of her mouth.

"Wuzzit?" Anna batted the sheet of paper away and caught sight of Gerda in the doorway, holding an enormous box. "Yes Gerda?"

Gerda, as always ignored the princess's antics. She'd looked after the young woman practically since the day she'd been born. She'd seen it all.

"These are Elsa's trade notes." Gerda said hefting the box as she entered the room.

Anna raise an eyebrow. "From what, the last hundred years?"

Gerda dropped the box on the desk, making the sturdy wood creak ominously. "These are just the last two decades."

"Oh, well now I guess I know what she was doing all those hours alone in her room." Anna said, slightly louder than she had meant to.

Gerda smiled softly, like a mother silently recalling a painful time in her child's life that had been overcome. "Just after your parent's death, Elsa worked out a brilliant trade agreement between Arendelle and our western partners." Gerda told the princess, pulling a few of the top papers free and handing them to Anna. "It was truly remarkable, quality work. Everyone on the council was blown away by her plan and insight at so young an age." Anna took the papers and glanced over the calculations. Her sister's perfect script and numbers covered the pages looking like a flurry of snowflakes falling across the page.

_Th__at's my sister_, Anna thought proudly. _The prodigal queen. And then there's me, the useless spare._

"I thought that these might be helpful in your calculations." Gerda was saying. "Due to the loss of both Weselton and the Southern Isles as trade partners and the damage caused by the winter, I know the queen was looking for alternative sources of income or exports we could exploit to make it through the winter and keep the coffers intact."

"I know." Anna said, trying not to let her exasperation show. "Is this all of it?"

"There's another box, I'll go get it."

Anna sighed dramatically. "Great…"

Gerda shuffled out of the study, leaving Anna alone with her worst enemy: homework.

Anna was far from a perfect student. Not to say she was dull, she was actually quite bright. Her troubles with studying usually stemmed from her inability to sit still and her curiosity for all things outside the gates. Books just weren't the same as meeting someone new or walking around town.

Standing up, Anna hefted the box off the desk and turned it upside down over the floor of the study. She got a strange sense of pleasure that the well-organized papers tumbled out in a heap and fluttered across the floor.

It reminded her of a snow drift. Of Elsa.

"Oh Elsa…" Why did everything have to remind her of her sister? Especially right now?

Anna missed her sister terribly. It wasn't just the separation, she was immune to that. Fourteen years of staring at a closed door would do that to you. No, this time it was the shear emptiness of the palace. At least when the door had been closed, she'd still known that Elsa was there, even if she never came out. Now, the palace just felt empty. Alone.

"I thought we were okay." Anna said to the emptiness. "I thought the door was finally open and you'd never close it again. I know it's hard for you but I'm here. I'll always be here, waiting for you to be ready. Just please come home soon Elsa." The emptiness offered no reassurance.

As her eyes aimlessly traveled the field of papers looking for a semi-interesting place to start, something caught her eye. "What is that?" Anna threw a few papers aside to get a better look at what had caught her attention.

It was a small brown book clasped tightly with a delicate string. It must have been hidden deep in the box, tucked among the other papers and forgotten.

Assuming it to be a book of calculations or something of the sort, Anna peeled open the cover.

She recognized the handwriting on the cover page. Her heart jumped to her throat.

"Elsa…"

This book wasn't full of figures.

_"My name is Elsa. And I just almost killed my sister."_


	6. Chapter 5

A.N.: Hey guys, sorry for the delay on this one. It ended up being much longer than it should have (apparently, I am incapable of writing chapters less than 10,000 words) and I was without wifi for a long time so the update was delayed.

Also, unfortunately, this story may be going on hiatus for awhile after this chapter. I'm just not feeling really great about this story right now and I need some time to rethink it and maybe repost it when my head is in the right place. I welcome thoughts, comments, suggestions, encouragement and constructive criticism.

_Chapter 5: Conversations with Ice_

_I raced up the hill, the cold air of the North Mountain burning in my lungs. It felt so good to be here, to be free. When was the last time I'd let loose like this? The last time I'd created something?_

_Not since childhood._

It's time to see what I can do… to test the limits and break through.

_There was a crevasse in my way, I thrust my naked hands forward. A single thought was all it took and the snow formed a fluffy-looking staircase that stretched halfway across the ravine. I could do so much better than that. I ran forward, hesitating on the first step. Would it hold? The water in the fjord had…_

No right, no wrong, no rules for me.

_This was my life now, a life I would create for myself. I placed my foot on the first step and the spiky diamond dust turned to flawless, smooth ice. I hadn't smiled like this in forever._

_The power gushed through me, strength I didn't even know I had rushing to ever fiber of my being. It was…liberating._

I'm free!

_I began to run. The staircase flowed out in front of me from my hands as I climbed, like each individual particle of snow wanted nothing more than to help me defy gravity. _

Let it go! Let it go! I'm one with the wind and sky!

_I was the vessel through which the cold flowed. I __**was**__ every snowflake and shard of ice. In no time at all, the gorge was bridged with a beautiful staircase of ice that glittered in the starlight. _

Let it go! Let it go! You'll never see me cry!

_I was free, on my own to discover this brave new life. The power was growing stronger, stronger then it ever had before. But it no longer scared me. I couldn't hurt anyone here. Here I could create._

Here I stand!

_I stomped my foot and a thick, solid floor of ice formed under me accompanied by a release I'd never felt before. _

And here, I'll stay! Let the storm rage on…

_My hands traced the air above the surface, feeling every drop of water in the surface under my feet, every trapped bubble of air that longed to expand. _

_I called to them and lifted them skyward, adding pillars and columns, icy walls and arches. My whole form twisted and coiled, flowing along the direction of the ice. Dancing in the storm, power flying from every point on my body and shooting out in a wide, cold arc. There was no plan, no spontaneous release. It was all perfectly controlled but the result was completely unexpected. I was merely making a mental picture in my mind and forcing it into reality at the same instant. The power had never come so naturally before. This was not casting or guiding the ice, this was __**creating**__ the ice. _

My power flurries through the air into the ground…

_Everything in this palace was a piece of me. An extension of my singing soul. Every motion added another piece to the temple. I sent a great burst of energy out from the center of the floor. It crawled up the walls and expanded to form a great pointed ceiling, then dripped downward into a great chandelier. _

My soul is spiraling in frozen fractals all around…

_Here my powers were beautiful again. Here I could be myself and let this gift of mine shine and expand. This place would become sacred ground. _

* * *

"Are you even listening to me?"  
Elsa forced her thoughts back to reality and really tried not to glare at Theo. She only half succeeded. "Sorry, what was that?"

"I said, you're making the platform tip. Again!"

Elsa hurriedly tilted the ice block under their feet back upright, increasing its length as it constantly dripped away behind them. "It's kind of hard to both keep it upright and make sure it doesn't drip away to nothing in this wind!" She replied, trying not to snap.

Theo shifted her hands and the brisk, warm gale pushing them over the land below slowed somewhat.

"So don't constantly rebuild it, let it drip for awhile then build it again." She said through her teeth.

"I wouldn't need to constantly rebuild it if you would stop melting it every three seconds." Her only comfort in this argument was that at least she knew she wasn't making it obvious how hard she was trying to keep cool.

"I am sorry the host of a fire goddess can't stop radiating waves of heat in the middle of summer."

Elsa glared at the ice under her feet and closed her lips around her retort. She was tired of fighting. This bickering had been going on in one form or another practically since they'd left the temple. Elsa was starting to regret her decision to escape to the ice palace. At least at the temple she could get away from Theo for a bit or avoid her entirely. The past few hours had been gut-wrenchingly painful. And that was a huge understatement.

_Was this her plan all along?_ Elsa suddenly wondered. _Go with me to make me realize she can make my life much worse on her own?_

"I'm sorry." Elsa was startled out of her thoughts by the quiet, nearly inaudible whisper.

"I'm sorry?" She repeated, certain she had heard wrong.

Theo shuffled her feet and looked up at Elsa. Her gaze was hard but it lacked any of the contempt she'd formerly held for the queen. "Garret pointed out to me that I have not been… the most gracious of…I have not…I've been kind of a…"

"A stuttering fool?" Elsa offered.

The girl bristled instantly. "You know what, you are just…" Theo trailed off, catching sight of the mischievous glint in Elsa's eye. She flushed and looked away as she realized the ice queen was teasing.

"It's fine." Elsa said, smiling slightly. "It can't be easy having a new queen coming into your kingdom." She wondered how she'd react if someone tried to take Arendelle or Anna away from her. "I suppose your behavior is understandable."

Even though she wasn't looking at her, Elsa could feel the fire in the other's gaze burning into her back. "Excuse me? What about you? Your behavior these past two days can hardly be called courteous."

Elsa turned around. "You _kidnapped_ me." She reminded her.

Theo shrugged. "You broke my nose with a water pitcher."

"It was self-defense!"

"Not from my point of view…"

"You tried to set me on fire!"

"Yeah well, I do that sometimes."

They lapsed back into silence. It was not exactly comfortable but it was certainly a step up from the tense bickering from earlier. The North Mountain was steadily growing bigger as they shot towards it in the moonlight, Theo steering them on the summer wind and Elsa holding them up. Elsa could see a tiny pillar of blue poking out of the western gorge of the mountain and her heartbeat picked up.

"Oh…there's probably something I should tell you…" Elsa said, remembering what had happened the last time she'd been at her palace.

Theo gave her a noncommittal grunt.

"Well…I haven't exactly been back to the castle since it was stormed. It may be in slight disarray." There had been no time since she'd been attacked there to return to see how it was holding up. Elsa feared it had been pillaged or ruined by the men who had taken her from it.

"Oh, I'm shattered." Theo said in a voice dripping with sarcasm. "Here I was hoping for a flawless creation worthy of the Mother herself…"

"Also," Elsa continued, ignoring the other girl's smirk. "my guard may be…well he may…watch out for him when we arrive." She had no idea what had happened to the big guy. But he wasn't dead, of that much she was sure.

"You have a guard?" Theo seemed puzzled.

Elsa gave her a wry smile. "You'll see." She could feel the life she had given him glistening still, like an icicle that had not yet melted.

The fire-girl shrugged. "Nevertheless, I pity the poor soldier in your army that has to spend all his time freezing his ass off up here guarding your palace…"

Elsa said nothing in reply because at that moment, she had realized the castle was close enough to see.

The horizon was just beginning to glow with rosy pre-dawn light, the mountains in the distance still painted by the fading aura borealis. The palace she had constructed on her first night of freedom sat nestled in its hollow, the pinkish glow of the rising sun and the icy-blue northern lights casting contrasting ribbons of light across its many facets.

Elsa was relieved to see that the palace looked untouched by the recent lapse in cold. All its turrets were still standing and damaged seemed to be no greater than what the skirmish had caused.

She turned to Theo and opened her mouth to tell her they were almost there but the words died in her throat.

Theo was staring at the ice palace with an expression Elsa could only describe as dumbfounded. Her eyes traced over the facets of the castle slowly, desperate to take in every detail, memorize the way the light made it glow.

Elsa was almost tempted to wave a hand in front of her face.

"You…made…that?" Theo whispered.

Elsa let out a giggle at the uncharacteristic tone the girl seemed unable to break out of.

"You should probably let us down, Theonia."

The girl blinked and looked around. Seeing that they were now right above the staircase leading to the palace, she lowered her hands and the ice platform slowly began to descend as the cushion of warm air fell lower.

Elsa could now see the lumpy pile of snow next to the staircase that was her snow-guardian. She gently reached out to him in her head, stirring him awake.

As their platform disintegrated to allow them to step into the snow, the snow giant awoke. Sleepily, the snow pile shifted and lifted itself free.

Elsa smiled up at him as he rose to his full height and gave her a toothless smile. He seemed smaller than she remembered. Also…Elsa squinted in the gathering light. Was that her tiara on his head?

Suddenly, the snowmonster's grin faded and icicles began to sprout from his back and arms. He roared and threw himself at the girls, icy teeth having formed in his mouth. To her surprise, Elsa felt a warm pair of hands on her shoulders, shoving her out of the way. She sprawled in the snow and quickly rolled back to her feet.

Her creation roared again as Theo took a step back, readying her red-hot hands.

Seeing Theo about to get crushed and her snow guard about to become a puddle, Elsa did the only logical thing she could think of. She threw up her arms and an enormous, thick ice cage formed around Theo. The sudden action startled the fire-girl so much that her fire-ball fizzed out.

The snow guard landed a single blow on the hard ice shell and reeled backwards as the recoil hit him.

"She's not a threat!" Elsa told the snowman. "Don't hurt her."

The snowman shook its head several times, like a dog that had just climbed out of the water and gave a quiet roar of obedience. The icicles on his back and arms shrank until they vanished entirely and the corner of his mouth turned up in the toothless smile again. It was rather goofy actually. Despite his tough exterior, he had a soft center.

The ice cage around Theo was melting slowly from the waves of heat the girl was releasing. But she hardly seemed to notice as all her attention was on the giant snowman that had just tried to kill her.

Elsa jogged back to her side. "Theo? Are you alright?"

Theo turned to look at her, her eyes wide with shock. "But…but how…how? He…he's alive?"

Elsa gently took the girl's wrist and pulled her out of the melting cage. "Don't worry he wont hurt you unless I tell him too." Theo stumbled over the snow, gazing up in absolute horrifying admiration. He grinned right back.

"Elsa bring friend?" He asked in his deep voice. "Stay?"

"Uhhh…no." Elsa replied, not sure if she was telling him that she wasn't staying or that Theo wasn't actually her 'friend'.

She tugged the fire-girl's arm and pulled her towards the staircase. Theo stumbled along after her, her eyes never leaving the giant snowman, who was now straightening the tiara on his head.

"How…? How did you _make _him?" She asked, still so amazed that she wasn't tugging her arm free from Elsa's grip.

Elsa shrugged. "I'm really not sure." It had happened the same way she'd made Olaf: without any real thought or effort on her part. She had had only one thought in mind when she'd conjured him up: _what scares Anna the most?_

So that was why he had soulless eyes, a deep, unsympathetic voice and long icy claws. He was meant to keep her sister away from her by force and fear, since Anna had been adamant about staying with Elsa when Elsa had been a clear and present danger to her.

As they began to climb the stairs across the gap, Elsa waved her hand to repair the damage it had sustained during Han's raid. The huge hole in the hand rail vanished like it had never existed and the cut-off stairs reformed into a flawless staircase.

Theo ripped her arm out of Elsa's grip and placed her hand on the rail as if it were a dear friend she had not seen in years. As Elsa watched, astounded, Theo ran her hands up and down the railing, as if trying to memorize the texture and imprint it onto her palms.

"No…no dammit!" Theo guiltily snatched her hands away to reveal a perfect indentation of her hands on the railing where her heat had melted them.

Elsa repaired the damage with another wave of her hand and continued on her way. Theo followed, not saying anything but radiating a guilty silence.

They entered the main hall and Elsa practically heard Theo's jaw drop.

The ceiling overhead glistened with millions upon millions of tiny ice crystals that formed high pillars and graceful chandeliers that seemed right on the verge of melting. Every room had intricate archways inlaid with graceful snowflake and ice shard patterns and high ceilings ending in graceful upside-down icicles.

Elsa let out a deep breath. Returning here made all the stress and worry of the past few days just vanish. She felt whole again.

Elsa had always studied architecture with a passion and fascination many would often describe as unbecoming of a woman. She couldn't help it, after all she'd been locked inside a castle for most of her life. Also, ice itself had an invisible, immensely complex architecture that so few could see.

Elsa's head was full of patterns and structures. She knew where every piece had to go to make it all fit together. Constructing this palace had been a colossal outpouring of twelve years of observation, study and memorization coupled with an intense longing to finally create something of her own.

The two of them crossed the entrance hall and made their way up the grand staircase to the second floor. Elsa wanted to check the damage from the raid and Theo was still maintaining her blissful, awed silence.

The second floor grand ballroom remained untouched from the night when the assassins from Weselton had attacked her. The icicles and walls of ice from the battle remained where they were, the balcony was in shards and an icy wind was pouring in through the gap. The rest of the room was littered with the shattered pieces of the fallen chandelier.

Elsa's jaw clenched in derision as memories of that fight came back to her.

"What…what happened here?" Theo asked, looking at the devastation.

_I almost killed two men here._ It was only Han's words that had kept her from becoming a monster.

With a single wave of her hand, the broken pieces of ice were swept out the hole in the wall on a gust of snowy wind. Elsa sealed the balcony with a new set of doors and set about making a new chandelier. This required a little more focus because she had to make the ice drip down from the severance above and then expand and divide into an ornate pattern. Not that it was hard.

Elsa closed herself off to everything else and began to sway in the space, letting the cold fill her. Then she began to create. Even though this time, she had a concrete idea in her mind of what she wanted to make, the act of drawing that design out of her and bringing it into reality was just as smooth as it had been the first time. When Elsa stopped swaying and twirling her hands, she opened her eyes to Theo gazing open-mouthed at a new chandelier.

Elsa took a step back to admire her work. This one was smaller than the original because Elsa really didn't want to be almost killed by a falling ornament again.

A sharp gasp drew Elsa's attention back to the fire girl.

Theo was leaning hard on the wall, her hand outstretched on the ice. She was shivering violently.

"Are you alright?" Elsa had thought the host of summer was incapable of feeling cold.

Theo took several deep, breaths and Elsa felt a slight gust of summer air wash through the room. "Branna can _feel_ Isen here…" Theo whispered, as if they were standing in a church in the presence of a god. She swallowed hard and writhed as if in immense discomfort. "She's _here_…" Her red eyes snapped to Elsa's blue ones and the ice queen was startled to see them watering profusely. "Reach out! Reach out!" Theo urged her.

"How…?"

Theo suddenly threw herself off the wall and grabbed Elsa by the shoulders. Elsa flinched not only from the contact but also from the feel of the girl's hands. They were burning hot. Where she had been touching the wall earlier, there were two watery depressions.

"The memories…They're too much…"

Theo grabbed Elsa's hands and slammed her eyes shut. Elsa stopped moving, finding she couldn't pull her hands away.

For a few seconds, the two of them stood absolutely still in the ice palace. No movement or sound but the gentle swaying and tinkling of the new chandelier overhead.

Finally, Theo let out a long breath and her muscles uncoiled. It seemed whatever had overwhelmed her had passed. She opened her eyes, looked down at their tightly entwined hands and roughly jerked hers free.

Elsa looked down, cooling her red hands with a small conjuring of snow.

A small puddle had formed under the fire-girl's feet. Elsa refroze the floor but it didn't last long.

"How are you going to stay here if you keep melting everything?" She asked Theo, freezing the spot again.

Theo's brow creased briefly in thought.

"Let's try…"

She closed her eyes and sand began to form under her feet. Slowly, grain by grain, it crawled up her feet until her entire foot was encased in a thick layer.

"Do you mind?" She asked Elsa, gesturing at the piles of sand.

Elsa pointed and the sand froze around Theo's feet. The ice melted upon contact with the hot sand but the sand clumped together as water bled between the grains. In no time at all, the sand had solidified into tight shoes.

Theo lifted a foot and smiled at Elsa. "Nice and toasty inside, colder on the outside."

Elsa found herself smiling back. "You think you're so impressive don't you? Well so long as we're changing attire…"

Elsa drew up memories of her first day here and recreated her ice dress, sighing in relief as the cool fabric of her ice crystals settled back into place on her skin. She left the train out for now.

She offered Theo a challenging grin as her ice dress settled into place. _I wonder if any of the others can make clothes like this…_

"What?"

The fire-girl blinked several times and examined her shoes. "Nothing…!" She mumbled, scuffing one sand heel on the ice underneath. "It's…uhhh… that's very nice."

"Thank you."

Theo was rubbing the back of her neck and very determinedly looked anywhere but at Elsa.

Examining the closest wall carefully, she jabbed her finger at a section of ice on the wall next to her that was spotted with white clumps. "There's too much air here, that'll weaken your structure." Theo commented. She ran the tips of her fingers along the wall until they reached a section where thick ripples had formed. "And this section here has been warped by wind probably from the broken doors. You could fix it if you're going for the smooth ice look, but I kind of like it." She snatched her hand back and guiltily wiped the beads of water away on her dress.

Now it was apparently Elsa's turn to close her mouth. "Are you seriously telling _the Ice Queen_ about ice?"

"Yes." Theo shot her a glance over her shoulder that could almost be mistaken for humorous if there wasn't just a hint of triumph in it. "Ice starts to go bad after awhile, even if it's kept frozen." She jabbed her finger at the wall next to the balcony doors, flaking away tiny bits of impeccably thin shaved ice. "You've got some young ice here, forming on the edges of the old. Probably from when we had to use the dart on you the other day. If you don't replace this entire section, it could eventually rot all the way through and crack open."

With a wave of her hand, Elsa cleared away the young ice and strengthened the walls again. "Where did you learn so much about ice?" She asked, feeling kind of cheated that she had no way of dictating everything she inherently knew about her element.

Theo's jaw tightened. "Circumstances." That was all she would say.

Elsa coughed. "Well…shall we start the um…the…"

"The meditation?" Theo nodded and tore her gaze away from the walls and walked to the center of the room. "Yes. Yes just…just sit here…" she pointed at the direct center of the room, right under the chandelier.

Elsa crossed to the spot and gracefully folded her legs under her, sparing the chandelier a nervous glance. There was no one here to shoot it down, she reminded herself. It would stay put.

Theo crouched in front of Elsa. "Now, I need you to just relax." She told the ice queen, her warm breath washing over Elsa's face. "Open your mind and think of whatever drove you to make this castle. Whatever _thing_ inside you sparked life inside that snowman outside. These things are Isen. She will respond if you speak to her."

Elsa nodded, feeling nervous for some reason. "Do you mind?" she asked, indicating the very little personal space Theo had left her.

The black-haired girl blinked several times before she realized just what Elsa meant. "Oh…! Of course…" Theo backed several feet away and watched Elsa intently.

Elsa closed her eyes and tried to open herself up as Theo had instructed.

For awhile, she felt that this was going to be a huge waste of time. Her mind refused to quiet down, wondering everything from how Theo knew so much about ice, to what Anna was currently doing to why the color of grass varied so much. As these thoughts finally quieted down, she became aware that her hearing had improved considerably. She could hear her own heartbeat, the wind through the walls of the castle, the big snowman clomping around outside and the quiet shifting of Theo as the girl watched her from across the room. And under that, there was a gentle humming. No, a moaning. Someone was moaning.

Elsa focused entirely on the sound, blocking out everything else. But as soon as she did, the sound faded, becoming nothing more than an echo. Desperate to hear it again, she flung her thoughts outward until they encountered the walls and turrets of the castle around her. The moaning returned and intensified.

Elsa sank into the noise, letting it fill her entire body and being, taking over her thoughts and feelings. As soon as she did, she became aware of one single beautiful, obvious fact.

The moaning was the ice. And it wasn't moaning, it was singing.

She felt everything in the castle, every weak point where air longed to burst free, every miniscule crack from where the palace had briefly melted in the thaw. The ice sang to her as it expanded and breathed, the cold wrapping its long, solid fingers around her and immersing her in a complete lack of feeling. She felt nothing, not the ice under her, not the dress on her skin, not even her skin itself. She had joined the cold and danced with it to the music of the ice. The softly falling snow kept time.

She floated in this oblivion, this complete freedom from worry and sense. If she could still feel her eyes, she knew she would be crying. But the tears were just as much a part of this world as she was and here, there was no distinction.

This was who she was, this was where she belonged. She was the cold that healed and soothed, the ice that preserved and hardened. The snow that made all rest and rejuvenate for the coming Spring.

The ice sang louder and drew her closer, closer until she sank right into it and felt the curves and ripples and air bubbles mold seamlessly to her flesh.

There was something there…under the sheet of ice, deeper than even she could bare to go, something was stirring softly as if deep in meditation and hearing its name called through the blackness of deep thought...

"…sa! Elsa, come back! Come back to me! Elsa!"

There was a burning warmth spreading all though her. Someone had lit a fire…a fire? The ice would melt…

Opening her eyes was the hardest thing Elsa had ever had to do. It felt like she was swimming for the surface, her lungs bursting but unable to tell which direction she had to swim.

When she finally managed to see again, a pair of burning ruby-red eyes greeted her.

"What…what happened…?" Her voice sounded hoarse. She blinked several times, her vision blurry and shifting.

She became aware that Theo was gripping her arms very tightly. "The entire castle was _glowing_." She said, her brilliant eyes doing the same. "It blazed with ice-blue light. And you may have added several new rooms…you were slipping too far..."

Elsa looked around, trying to get her vision to clear. She was sitting in a small pile of snow and several sheets of ice were sticking vertically out of the floor below her as if trying to seal her into a cage. One of them had been violently blasted through, a large hole steaming and dripping water to the floor. The trail of steam and water continued until it reached the place where Theo crouched in front of her.

Elsa blinked one last time and was met with the full, painfully clear vision of Theo's gaze. The summer host was staring at her, her face set in a fiercely tender expression Elsa had never seen before. She stopped and stared back.

Neither of them was moving. They hadn't moved for over a minute. The sleeves of Elsa's ice dress had begun to drip onto her lap but they didn't seem to notice or care. Theo's eyes were searching her own, moving back and forth so subtly it would have been impossible for Elsa to tell if she had not been this close to her. Burning fire-red pierced right into the icy azure-blue.

In that moment, Elsa forgot everything except the feel of a warm hand on her arm and the way her breath quietly scraped up and down her throat.

It lasted only a fraction of a second but Elsa would remember it forever. Theo's eyes darted down to her lips. Almost like it was a learned reflex, Elsa felt her tongue dart out to quickly moisten her bottom lip. Her mouth had gone very dry.

A tiny flame had sprung to life in her chest, its light softly spreading through her entire body.

The connection evaporated like steam as Elsa hissed in pain when a tiny whip of fire curled against her arm, melting the sleeve of her ice gown off completely. She pulled her burned arm free and blew an icy gust of breath towards it. Theo backed away from her like she had the plague and folded in on herself, almost defensively.

The icy breath soothed the burn so effortlessly that there was no pain. She almost felt like she should assure Theo of this but couldn't find any words that would sound anything but hollow.

Elsa glanced towards the window and saw that the sun was starting to drop back towards the horizon. How had so much time passed? Immediately, she realized just how deeply she had gone into herself. _Hours passed and it felt like nothing…_

Theo cleared her throat quite suddenly, startling Elsa. The girl ran a hand through her hair.

"I'm… I'm going to go step outside… cool off a little…try to find the big guy again…" The rest of her excuses trailed off into incoherent mumbles as she practically ran from the room, her sand shoes beginning to crumble.

Elsa watched her go, feeling lost and a little confused.

Had that actually just happened?

Having spent most of her life either in the library studying to be queen or in her room cursing her powers, Elsa had never had an 'encounter' of any kind with another human.

When it came to matters of the heart, she was barely more than a bumbling idiot making educated guesses. But…what had that been?

Elsa stood and slowly wandered back down the stairs to the entrance hall, trying so hard not to think about what had just happened but finding it was the only thing she could think about. Theo wasn't in the entrance hall but a few loose grains of sand were lying on the icy floor.

Elsa lifted them into the air on a flurry of snowflakes and watched them spin together for awhile.

She had never questioned her sexuality, never considered anything other than the inevitable: marry a suitor, have an heir and live out her days on the throne. Her out-of-control powers had thrown that plan a cliff to scale but had by no means made it impossible. The king and queen had always been optimistic that Elsa had plenty of time and would eventually find someone who could tolerate her "unique abilities" to carry on the line. Or if that were impossible, the line could always be carried on through Anna.

Elsa let the swirling sand-snowstorm drift off into a corner of the palace and die down.

So no, she'd never considered the possibility that she liked women instead of men. But…when she'd looked into Theo's eyes…

That tiny flame was still flicking brightly in her chest, making her insides feel like they were beginning to shine as wetly as the ice did under Theo's touch.

…could she be…?

Maybe.

But of all people, for _Theo?!_

Elsa sighed and looked up into the alcoves and spires of her creation, desperate to stop thinking about such dark and dangerous questions. The sunlight reflected endlessly among the spires, casting rainbow shadows along the floor. Her thoughts returned to the music of her meditation, the power that coursed through her and brought her no closer to her bodily companion but filled her with an overwhelming, confirming sense of self. Of identity. But no 'other'. No spirit.

_I went so deep and I still found nothing…how can I possibly contact Isen like this?_

"Elsa!"

The memories just came crashing back full-force as the door slid open again and her very first creation waddled inside. Elsa stared just like she had that first time. "Olaf!?"

The tiny snowman raced across the room and threw himself at Elsa, wrapping his twiggy arms around her middle and wiggling his legs as he squeezed her as tightly as snow could.

"Kristoff said you were kidnapped!" The snowman babbled, his carrot nose digging painfully into Elsa's stomach. "I don't know what that means but it sounds bad! Are you okay? My flurry vanished and Anna got really sad and then we visited the trolls and they said you'd be wherever your powers felt strongest and I said 'I know exactly where Elsa is!' Then we ran all the way here!"

Elsa struggled both to keep the snowman from falling and to follow his rambling train of thought. But the one thing that really stuck in her mind was the first thing the snowman had said. "Kristoff?"

"Your majesty?"

Elsa looked up at the new voice. The ice man raced into the room, sliding a little on the slick floor. He was panting, probably from having sprinted up the ice stairs. He looked absolutely relieved to see her. Elsa couldn't help glancing behind him and feeling more than a little disappointed that a strawberry-blonde head was not following him.

"Kristoff what are you doing here?" She asked, dropping Olaf. He straightened his carrot nose and beamed up at her. "Where's Anna?" Elsa had only known the ice master for a few days but in all that time, she'd come to trust him with her sister. After all, he had risked everything just to make sure she was safe.

"Anna wanted to come but I made her stay." Kristoff told her. "The kingdom's been unsettled enough recently. They needed her there to take charge."

The thought of her little sister in charge of a kingdom on the verge of financial collapse both terrified and frustrated the queen. Terrified because she knew Anna had a terrible record with trade calculations (She had once accidentally calculated the price of a standard shipment of Arendellian cod at roughly the same value as 300,000 bars of Melonia's finest chocolate. Something about tacking on a few extra zeros accidentally…). Frustrated because she couldn't be there to bring up that story and laugh about it with her while they worked this out together.

Elsa waved her hand and recreated Olaf's flurry to keep from replying right away. The snowman giggled and jumped up and down several times in glee as his body became fully solid once again.

"I'm going to go find Marshmallow!" He called, apparently completely satisfied that everything would be okay now that he'd found Elsa again. He waddled off into the back rooms, calling _Marshmallow! _over and over.

Elsa looked at Kristoff. "…Marshmallow?"

Kristoff smiled, looking like the action had been long forgotten. "That's what he calls the big guy."

The two of them chuckled uneasily.

"What are you doing here, Kristoff?" Despite her pleasure at seeing him, Elsa couldn't help but sound slightly accusing as she asked him again.

The mountain man who Elsa had barely gotten to know over the past few days was bundled up in the same garb he'd been wearing the last time he'd visited the palace. But now that she looked closer, Elsa saw bags under his eyes and angry read streaks of windburn on his face. He'd rushed here to find her.

The blonde man wasn't bothered by her tone. He'd seen much worse from her, after all. "I'm here to take you home."

If she'd heard those words this morning, Elsa would have thrown her arms around him in gratitude and left without a second thought. But that was before she'd head the ice sing. Before she'd felt that connection deep inside to the ice around her.

Elsa took a step back and shook her head. "Kristoff… I can't leave…" She was torn. She needed to go home, she needed to help her kingdom heal and reach out to her sister. But now there was _this_.

"Elsa…" Kristoff's gentle voice only made her shake her head more violently.

"I can't go back…they'll find me…"

"Elsa, the trolls told us about the temple, about the others, about…you." His eyes shone with a strange mixture of pity and fear. In the short time she'd known him, Elsa had seen him stumble over formalities then profusely apologize when he remembered he was addressing a queen even if said queen insisted he address her by name. Now, she realized, he knew he was addressing a whole new level of authority. The host of goddess.

"Please," Kristoff pleaded with her, his head falling slightly. "this isn't the life for you."

Elsa folded her hands, trying her best to adopt her queenly regality. She hated that this man she'd accepted into her life now as nearly a brother felt he had to address her formally again but if it helped her make her case, she'd gladly exploit it. "Kristoff, look I appreciate you coming after me but really, this is something I need to do."

Kristoff's head snapped back up. "Says who?" He said bluntly, all traces of formality and meekness gone. "Some other spirit trying to put you in another cage? That's not the solution and you know it. You were doing just fine before they came along."

Memories of her meditation swirled in Elsa's mind. Of that vast well of _something_ just sitting there inside the ice that she couldn't reach. "But I could be doing better." She told him. "And now there's something they need my help with, something that could help me help all my citizens."

"They want you to help them find Autumn don't they?"

Elsa supposed she shouldn't have been surprised how much the trolls knew but hearing Kristoff say the words so bluntly made her stare at him.

Kristoff stepped closer, his face set. "Elsa…I know it's not my place to say, but…" He took a deep breath, overcoming his newfound apprehension of her. "This is not your concern. This is their problem, something they have dragged you into against your will. Arendelle is your priority, first and always. Arendelle needs you." He paused, letting those words sink in before he delivered the final, fatal blow. "Anna needs you too."

Elsa flinched visibly, her hands clenching. "I know." She knew she was abandoning her kingdom by doing this, the guilt never left her. She knew how much it must have hurt Anna to have woken up and not be there like she had promised. But there was nothing she could do. This was out of her control now. She was a part of this cycle, if she left, it could all fall apart. But she would do whatever she could to free herself again. To get back to Anna and Arendelle. Even if it meant going back in a cage for awhile and wearing away more of her bond with Anna.

Kristoff was quiet, watching her emotions flicker across her face. "So why?" He finally asked her.

"Elsa?" Theo took that moment to poke her head into the room, startling everyone in it. Upon seeing Kristoff, her gaze darkened and her hands became encased in glowing fireballs.

"Get back!" She shouted to Elsa, readying the balls for throwing.

If anything, the mountain man seemed more shocked by the presence of Theo herself than by the flames in her hands. "You?!" Kristoff exclaimed, staring at the fire-girl in amazement as he spoke. Theo glared at him, the fire in her hands slowly burning brighter and hotter. But after a few seconds, her glare softened and the fire in her eyes dimmed considerably as they widened. It was clear that she recognized Kristoff.

Elsa looked between them. "You two know each other?"

Kristoff glanced from Theo to Elsa to Theo's hands. "It's…well…it's been years…I…I thought you were dead." He finally said to Theo, sounding like he was accusing her.

"Yeah well, can't kill me that easily." Theo said drily.

"You…you never came back."

Theo shifted out of her attack stance, closing her hands around the flames to smoother them. Smoke leaked out from between her fingers. "No one wanted me." She said quietly, coiled tensely in on herself.

The silence lingered in the room.

Finally, Kristoff turned back to Elsa. "Elsa…" He began, glancing at Theo. "we need to take you home. Anna's devastated without you, you know? She just got you back and this feels like she's lost you all over again."

Elsa could feel the truth of Kristoff's words twisting into her heart but she was determined not to let the pain show on her face.

"I can't…" She began to protest but was cut off by Theo.

"Who's Anna?"

"My little sister."

Theo's face fell, confusion melting off of her features and solidifying again as the hard mask of realization. "Go." She wasn't speaking to Kristoff.

"What?"

"I was right," Theo commented, gesturing around the ice atrium. "this place is too conspicuous. Someone's already found us, imagine how quickly others will come."

"But you said…"

Theonia glared, her eyes blazing as only they could. "Go home, Elsa." She turned away from the ice queen and Kristoff, her shoulders and neck tightening.

"Why now?" Elsa asked.

"Keep trying to contact Isen." Theo said, completely ignoring Elsa's question. Her hands closed into fists. "Promise me that. Don't give up until you speak to her."

"Why the sudden change of heart?"

Theo bristled but no flames jumped from her fingers. "Just go!"

Elsa had a sudden desire to pull the girl back to face her, to force Theo to stare into her eyes again so she could see why she was acting so strangely. Her fingers twitched towards the action but Theonia saw it and flinched away from Elsa.

"Leave!" She roared, and a brief blast of heat swept through the palace, making the occupants flinch and the hanging decorations tremble and sweat. "The Mother commands that you return to your kingdom!"

Then with a sound like a howling hurricane, a warm tornado whipped through the hall, picked up the summer host and deposited her at the top of the grand staircase. Without a backward glance, Theo vanished up the icy stairs to the upper floor.

Kristoff let out a long, low breath. "Wow. She's…changed."

Elsa turned to him but found she had nothing to say.

Kristoff tilted his head back towards the entrance to the palace. "So are we going or…?"

"Yes." Elsa glanced upward towards the recesses of the palace briefly. "We're leaving."

* * *

Theo remained alone in the ice palace as the sled pulled by Sven containing Elsa, Kristoff and Olaf headed back towards Arendelle. She was standing in the second floor ballroom again, underneath where the new chandelier hung, glittering in the light of the dying sun.

It truly was a work of art. Up close, each hanging bangle fell in a perfect teardrop of ice, looking ready to drip from the heavens and splash upon the floor. But from a distance, the entire thing resembled a beautiful snowflake, dangling precariously above a perfectly reflective surface. When the sunlight hit it, it changed colors rapidly and unpredictably.

This entire palace was like that.

From the moment her eyes had first gazed upon it, Theo was paralyzed by the beauty around her. Being inside was like being under the ice again. Cut off from the world, in complete isolation, her senses at once engaged by the complexity around her and soothed by the simplicity of the ice.

Theo's finger ghosted past an archway inlaid with miniscule snowflakes, each unique. A tiny moan escaped her lips. She dared not touch them, lest she make them melt into obscurity.

Theo's love affair with ice was an unfortunate circumstance of her backwards life before she had discovered the spirit living within her and the fate that had been written for her because of it.

She loved the ice, its many facets and folds, the way it simultaneously reflected everything from its past and played an integral role in the shape of the future.

Everything about it completely contrary to everything she could do. Everything she touched was ruined. Fire destroyed all. Occasionally, the heat transformed what it destroyed, like how she formed glass orbs from her sand. Ice could destroy too. But ice eventually melted. Water evaporated. Fire only burned. And the scars remained forever.

The ground under her feet had begun to shine wetly as her agitation bled through in heat waves.

Theo crafted herself a sand platform and lifted herself free of the ice. She floated under the chandelier, gazing up at the endless patterns upon patterns. She couldn't stay here, not while she was this strong and out of control. She'd melt this entire beautiful creation. She should probably just go back to the temple.

But she couldn't bring herself to leave yet. She hovered in the recesses of the castle, drinking in the familiarity and novelty of the ice she had missed so.

Truth be told, she had not asked the Mother for permission to send Elsa back. It had just been something she had decided in that moment, with no input from Branna and no silent, instantaneous prayer to that other voice that hung around her shoulders and ears like a scarf and spoke its will at the most inopportune moments.

_Why did you let her go if it was not the Mother's command…?_

"She's been silent on the entire matter of Elsa." Theo told Branna tiredly. The Mother refused to speak directly to her children, preferring instead to offer her voice of command only to the host of the first awakened: the Head Councilor.

_So you take her fate on yourself?_

"What else can I do?"

_Stay. Keep her under watch. The way you said you would._

Her fist clenched. "I can't be around her right now…"

_Theonia. Do not let this revelation or whatever you think you are feeling cloud your judgment. Do what must be done…what you know has to be done…what is required…_

The sand under her feet had fused under the heat of her stress and formed a great glass sheet. Curls of smoke drifted from the edges and every so often, a flame would briefly burst to life. "No, Branna!" Theo shouted, forcefully containing the heat as close to her body as possible so that she would not damage the ice around her. "This does not concern you and it never will! For once, _keep out of my head_!" A great crack split the glass sheet.

And for the first time since she had awakened, the fire spirit was blissfully silent as Theo fell to her knees on the splintering glass, breathed deeply and tried to keep the burning tears from sliding down her face.

* * *

Anna hadn't slept all night.

The princess-turned-Acting-Regent had stumbled out of the royal office several hours after dawn, gently brushing away Gerda's offer to draw her a bath, saying she needed to look something up in the library for the trade records. She'd spent all night reading reports, sorting them based on priority and trying to make sense of years worth of her sister's careful, beautiful calculations that seemed just as complex and unique as the snowflakes Elsa created. The whole night, she'd kept the small brown book tucked out of sight between her legs.

Now she was trying to find somewhere to read it in private, somewhere where none of the staff would happen to find her should any more royal business come up.

Anna descended the staircase to the main floor, the book clasped tightly against her chest. She felt like she was sneaking around. She didn't want anyone else to know she was holding a book of Elsa's secrets.

Anna fingered the small book nervously. It had effectively been handed to her. And Elsa had promised there would be no more closed doors. So she shouldn't feel any remorse about reading it right? Anna had a right to know. Especially since the quick glimpse she'd gotten last night had imprinted itself in her brain and across her heart. _I just almost killed my sister…_

What could that possibly mean?

All the same, she felt like she was holding a piece of her sister's soul in her hand. It felt like something unbelievably fragile and precious, a piece of her sister that Elsa had broken off and hidden away because of the pain of carrying it around. Anna wanted to know her sister's pain. She only hoped that it was something she could handle. She had no idea where her relationship with her sister currently stood but if this could help…

Anna rounded a corner, walking a little too fast without much regard to where she was going. Her shoulder hit something, Elsa's book flying out of her grip as she stumbled.

"I do apologize…"

Before Anna could react, an auburn head of hair crossed her field of vision, reaching for the book.

Anna froze. _No, not him. How could he be here?_

The man straightened up, holding out the book for Anna.

"Here you go."

It took Anna's sleep-deprived mind several seconds to realize that she was not looking at Prince Hans but rather, someone slightly older, with blue eyes and a thin beard.

She snatched the book back, mumbling a quiet thank you.

The man bowed considerately to her. "Prince Christian of the Southern Isles, my lady. Fifth in line to the throne." He straightened up and offered her the same smile Hans had given her that a mere five days ago had made her swoon. "I was told the queen was expecting me?"

Anna bristled, holding the book tighter. "Who told you that?" She demanded, not even bothering to introduce herself as she was fairly certain he already knew who she was.

If the prince was surprised by her lack of manners, he hid it well. "Your steward? Kai, I believe the fellow's name was?"

Anna nodded. "Yes." She said nothing else, letting the silence hang uncomfortably.

Prince Christian cleared his throat self-consciously and played with his sword belt. He was built a little larger than Hans and had the air about him of a gentle giant who was acutely aware of his own strength. "Well if she'd busy now, I can always…"

"The coronation was five days ago." Anna interrupted him, not feeling at all guilty. "I'm afraid all our accommodations have expired and we will be unable to entertain you." She didn't care that she was being rude to a guest. As far she was concerned, anyone from the Southern Isles was little more than dirt.

Prince Christian smiled courteously, his perfect court manners were starting to annoy Anna. "I am not here for pleasure my lady. Far from it. My ship was late for the coronation, I arrived only this morning…there was a hell of a storm."

"So why are you here now?" Anna asked, shuffling her feet but not breaking eye contact.

The Prince's gaze darkened and Anna immediately experienced nostalgia of the moment Hans had locked her in the drawing room to die. Apparently, evil facial expressions were something all the Princes of the Isles shared. "Well, after I received the queen's message about my little brother's behavior, I hurried here hoping some kind of agreement could be made. Her Highness told me we could meet as soon as I docked."

_Elsa spoke to the Southern Isles? When?_ Although logically, Anna knew that her sister probably had a perfectly reasonable explanation for this, she couldn't help the tiny flare of betrayal that took that opportunity to burst to life in her stomach.

"What sort of agreement?" She asked.

"Financial." Prince Christian replied. "We would not like my baby brother's unfortunate behavior to ruin the relationship between our two kingdoms."

"Well I'm afraid her majesty has been up all night reviewing trade agreements and local issues." Anna told him. It wasn't exactly a lie. At the moment, Anna was acting queen and she _had_ been up all night. And she wasn't getting to sleep anytime soon. Not while the book in her hands remained unread. "She will be unable to meet with you today or tomorrow as she is otherwise occupied." _I just wish I knew where._ Anna thought sadly to herself.

Prince Christian inclined his head respectfully. "I understand. My men and I will retire to the inn we are staying in. Please do have your steward send for us at the queen's earliest convenience." He turned around and made his way back towards the entrance hall. Anna watched him go, her heart sinking.

Great, the Southern Isles wanted to make a deal of some kind.

Personally, Anna wanted to sock this prince in the jaw as well and send him on his way with damaged pride and an icicle in his pants. But Elsa had called this meeting, Elsa knew that severing all ties with the Isles could very well lead Arendelle to financial ruin. Elsa wouldn't let emotional reservations towards the Princes of the Isles get in the way of providing for her people. Which is why Elsa was the queen and Anna was the stand-in.

_Elsa. _Anna's exhaustion returned full force as she thought of her sister for the millionth time. The only reason she'd pushed through all the paperwork was for her sister. Some part of her had convinced herself that if she could just figure out this whole economic mess, Elsa would come back, smiling and beaming with pride and gratitude and promise her she would never leave again.

But here she was, sleep-deprived, no closer to a solution, plagued by another prince of the Southern Isles and about to read her sister's book full of dark secrets.

Anna hurried on her way, thinking perhaps that the kitchen would be nice and empty at this time of the day and she'd be able to cozy up somewhere with a few cookies and dive deeper into her sister's secret book, safely out of the way of royal duties and prying servant eyes.

She pushed her way quietly into the kitchens, not making a sound. Years of secret raids on the kitchens both with and without Elsa had taught her the stealth skills necessary to navigate the creaky, haphazard-filled kitchen.

As Anna had predicted, the kitchen was empty, the servants having finished their breakfast and gone off to do their chores and the royal chef having retired until lunchtime.

Anna grinned and made her way over to the pantry where the tin with her favorite shortbread cookies were kept. Finally, time alone with the book!

"What the…?" As she pulled open the door to the pantry, someone came tumbling out.

Anna's first impression was that it was an animal because it was just so dirty and its hair stuck up every which way. But as the thing stumbled, dropping several dried fruits and a loaf of bread, she realized it was human.

"Who are you?"

The grubby-looking boy's eyes darted to the door and he made a dash around Anna towards freedom. He would have escaped too, if Anna hadn't started moving the moment she saw his eyes move. Anna caught him around the middle and pushed him back into the room.

Although Anna hadn't pushed him very hard, the boy fell backward and landed hard on his bum, his legs spread wide. Several more dried fruits tumbled from the recesses of his tunic. "Please don't have the queen freeze me!" He begged Anna, his eyes watering. "I don't want to lose any of my fingers!"

"Why would she freeze you?" Anna asked him, reaching out a hand to pat his shoulder.

He flinched away from her, holding his dirty hands in front of his mouth like he expected to be hit. "'cause I stole from her!" He wailed. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" He began to cry in earnest, his thin shoulders shaking.

Anna sat back on her heels and took a good look at the boy. He clearly was not one of the servants, nor any of the servants' children. He was far too dirty and haphazardly dressed to have anything to do with the palace. His shoes were two different sizes and the tunic he was wearing was at least three sizes too big for him and looked like it had already been thoroughly loved and then discarded by its owner. He had no shirt. He was younger than she expected him to be. He couldn't have been much older than six.

As the poor boy sat there, shaking in fear and desperation, tears tracing tracks through the mud on his face, Anna felt her heart go out to him.

"Is that all you took?" She asked him, gesturing at the fruits scattered around the floor.

The boy gulped and nodded, refusing to meet her eyes.

Anna grinned. "Well then, you have to try the chocolate!"

He looked up in surprise. Anna winked and crossed to the cupboard opposite the fireplace. Inside, hidden behind rows of flour and yeast, Anna kept her secret supply of emergency chocolate. This definitely counted as an emergency.

She broke off a generous piece, split it in half and walked back over to the boy.

"Elsa wont freeze you." She told him.

He wiped his nose noisily. "Howdyou know?"

Anna gave him her warmest smile. "Because I wont let her. And Elsa doesn't just go around freezing people! She's much to kind."

The boy blinked in surprise. "Wait…are you Princess Anna?"

She handed him the chocolate before replying. "That's me."

He held the chocolate like it was a priceless gift he'd never dream of receiving. "Wow…you're even prettier than he says!"

Anna blushed slightly. "Then who says?"

"My brother." The boy told her, folding his legs to get more comfortable. "He's sick, so I'm stealing food for him. He always says Princess Anna has hair like crackling flames and eyes the color of the harbor!"

Anna joined him on the floor, biting her own piece of chocolate. She placed the book carefully in her lap.

"Where are you parents?" She asked him gently.

The boy didn't answer. He gave the chocolate an experimental lick and his eyes lit up. He took an enormous bite, smearing chocolate across his cheek.

Anna giggled at his complete abandon so similar to her own and found her laughter was not alone. Although he was young and had obviously seen hard times Anna could never dream of, his laugh was that of a child. Young and hopeful, bursting with potential.

Anna was glad he'd calmed down and warmed up to her. Anna had that effect on people. Her sister inspired both awe and fear. She inspired trust and love.

The boy shyly ducked his head and absorbed himself once again in the treat, as if he'd only just realized he was laughing with the 'beautiful' Princess Anna.

Anna looked him up and down again as she nibbled on her chocolate. "What's your name?" She asked the boy as he devoured the chocolate.

"Dunnot have one miss." He mumbled, eyes on the floor.

A bad liar herself, Anna knew all the signs children displayed when they were lying.

"Alright then, I think from now on I'll call you Dagrun." Anna told him, choosing a name from one of her favorite stories of a brave prince at war.

The boy shrugged; he didn't care what he was called. "Alright miss…"

"Where do you live Dagrun?" Anna asked the boy kindly, polishing off her share of chocolate.

The boy wiped chocolate off his cheek then sucked on his hand to get as much of it as he could.

"Wherever I can, Princess."

So he was a street orphan. Anna had suspected as much from his clothes. Arendelle had several dozen such children running around. Most were from poor families or the children of castle servants but a few were orphans, children of shipwrecked sailors or slave runaways from neighboring kingdoms.

Anna leaned forward a little twinkle in her eye as the plan solidified in her mind. "I have a little job for you."


End file.
